Abstract Industrial Development Zones (IDZs) are Special Economic Zones which are set aside to facilitate the establishment of export oriented industries which are subjected to custom made policies and incentives. South Africa currently has three functional IDZs which have realised varying levels of success, namely Richards Bay IDZ (RBIDZ), Coega IDZ (CIDZ) and the East London IDZ (ELIDZ). The South African government’s New Growth Path aims at ensuring economic growth and promoting job creation. Investment into the manufacturing sector is expected to contribute to the country’s growth and employment imperatives. Industrial Development Zones have been noted as having significant potential of contributing to growth. Key success factors noted for the operation of development zones include well defined financial and policy incentives, close location to ports or main transport nodes, along with focused marketing of the zones. South Africa’s Industrial Development Zones policy framework has some shortcomings which were identified in the research process. Examples of the shortcomings include lack of adequate financial incentives for investors in Industrial Development Zones and absence of a coordinated marketing strategy for the country’s zones. The shifting global economic landscape is seeing an increase in the economic power of developing countries such as the Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) bloc. As investors increasingly make steps to establish operations in new regions, development zones are expected to attract growing investment. Revision of the South African IDZ framework is anticipated to make the zones more attractive and competitive.

Being an avid reader and also one who is passionate about business, whenever I come across stories which show creativity and ingenuity- I can’t but acknowledge such exploits. As a frequent traveller, I get to pass through the airport a number of times and something one never can miss after passing through the security check are the gentlemen doing shoe shine. All the times I see them I am impressed by the simple yet profitable venture. Same way there are quick massage, manicure and pedicure sta

Tatenda S Zingoni discusses the ever changing roles of the business owner as the business starts to grow and become successful

Cape Town - Not everyone has the good fortune to attend a university or other tertiary institution.To then land a job and start earning an income is another great achievement, and a privilege many don’t get to experience.Moving from barely making it from month to month on a low allowance to receiving a monthly pay cheque is a huge jump and nothing short of a culture shock.Suddenly, it seems like you can get all those things you used to want and could never afford. Therein lies a trap which many

There have been plenty of discussions about the challenges SMMEs are faced with in trying to access funding. What has been missing from such dialogue is a look into the underlying flaws in the structures of the SMMEs which restrict access to finance, and what can be done to overcome them.

On the 23rd of January, the Minister of Trade & Industry Dr Rob Davies gazetted the draft Special Economic Zones (SEZ) Bill for public comment. The bill is a welcome move as the government has acknowledged there is a deficiency with the current Industrial Development Zones (IDZ) framework. The major challenges which characterise the existing IDZs have been highlighted and steps have been outlined for dealing with them. Now what is left is the translation of the good ideas which are there on paper into practical action steps that need to be taken by the government and other related stakeholders.

The restructuring of the country’s industrial development zones (IDZs) into special economic zones (SEZs) could provide a solution to the mismatch between available skills and available jobs, but the government would have to do more with tax incentives, investment experts said yesterday. The Department of Trade and Industry (dti) said last month that it was looking to restructure the IDZs and create holistic SEZs instead. The department has gazetted the SEZ Bill, which is open for public comment.

The Department of Trade and Industry should look at spreading the industrial development zones (IDZs) to other parts of the country if South Africa was serious about boosting its manufacturing economy, analysts at Frost & Sullivan said yesterday. If the country’s manufacturing industry was competitive enough, it would be able to attract foreign direct investment (FDI) flows and South Africa would see fewer investors leaving for countries like China, said research analyst Tatenda Zingoni. The m

Dollarization is the process whereby a country takes on the use of another country’s currency, in most cases the US dollar. The process is called dollarization even if the currency being used is the Pula, Rand, Pound or any other currency. In the case of Zimbabwe, US dollars, SA rands, Botswana pula and British pounds are currently being used. The terminology of “multi-currency” regime is therefore used to refer to this prevailing currency position.