Nearly a year has past since Ms Khunjulwa Ruth Manzi’s appointment as CEO and already she has made great strides in furthering the plans of the Kouga Development Agency (KDA). Ms Manzi has great expectations for the Agency, business and government alike. She believes that public/private partnerships are much needed in South Africa due to the public sector being unable to single-handedly create further employment and alleviate poverty. Partnerships with the private sector should be embarked upon more often while an enabling environment should be created in order for the sector to thrive.

Some of the highlights from her year include:

The Skills Audit
The KDA, in partnership with local human resource specialist, The Skills Group, conducted a skills audit of the Kouga region, which includes Hankey, Patensie, Jeffreys Bay and Humansdorp. The audit involved aptitude and National Qualifications Framework level self tests that determine the extent of skills gaps that exist in the Kouga region. The audit will lead to a focus on critical skills required for development of the mandate area as well as implementation of other priority projects in the greater Kouga area. These include hospitality, carpenters, construction and general maintenance, which include landscaping.

Business Database
The KDA has started compiling a business directory of all the local businesses in the Kouga region. The business directory was developed to inform potential investors for development of the mandate area of the businesses that are available in the Kouga region and to encourage them to make use of these businesses. The master agreement that will be entered into between KDA and the developer will encourage use of local businesses for the development.

Gamkab Conservancy
The main objective of the Gamkab conservancy is to generate interest and active participation by landowners in the conservation of indigenous fauna and flora and the protection of the environment in the area. The KDA is now in the process of applying for the conservancy of neighbouring farms of the already acquired area. The conservancy certificate, when attained, will state the name of the farm and not the owner so that the farm can retain its status regardless of the owner.

Entrepreneur Training
The KDA, in partnership with the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC), recently conducted an entrepreneurship training course. The skills development and training courses catered for approximately 20 people, from suppliers, hairdressers to car washers and security guards.

The KDA has also advertised a request for proposals for the mandated area for the multibillion rand ecotourism resort in Jeffreys Bay. The call for proposals was re-advertised due to various reasons including non-compliance by bidders. The briefing session was considered successful as it was attended by more than 20 representatives. The tender closed in June 2009 and will be awarded by the end of August 2009.