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The Minister of Trade and Industry, Dr Rob Davies says the recently designation of the Nkomazi Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Mpumalanga will contribute significantly to the economic and industrial development of the Nkomazi region and the province at large.Minister Davies designated the Nkomazi SEZ as the 10th Special Economic Zone in South Africa last month.The Nkomazi SEZ will be developed as an agro-processing hub, supported by logistics and other related services.

The Minister’s decision follows the cabinet’s ratification on the minister’s decision to designate and grant the SEZ License to the Mpumalanga Provincial Government’s Department of Economic Development and Tourism.

To date, special economic Zone programme has attracted 115 private companies with a total value of R11.6 billion from private investments leveraging on the R4. 6 billion pf public investments.The SEZ programme has created more than 14020direct jobs and as well as many multipliers.

According to Minister Davies, the introduction of SEZ Tax incentives,which include the reduced15 %Corporate Tax Incentive, Employment Tax Incentives,Customs and excise incentive,and Accelerated Depreciation of Building allowance have brought a much needed investment confidence into the programme and the country. Minister Davies says this is attested by the increase in investment attracted and those that are currently under construction.

“Taking advantage of the Tax incentive package and the SEZ investment pipeline, the dti” target is to increase the number of investments into the zones, and double the rand value of operational investments from R11.6 Billion to R23 billion by the end of 2019”, says Minister Davies.

Last month President Cyril Ramaphosa launched the 124.5-hectare area,Atlantis Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Atlantis, Western Cape Province. The Atlantis SEZ is designated for the manufacturing of green technologies,alternative waste management, energy efficient technology, alternative building material and many other clean technologies.

“SEZ Programme continues to be government’s priority industrial infrastructure programme aimed at developing new industrial hubs, attracting new foreign direct and domestic investments, contributing to the development of industrial capabilities and skills development, as well as creation of decent jobs”,says Minister Davies.

Issued by The Department of Trade and Industry