Date: 30/01/2004
Source: Department of Public Enterprises
Title: Radebe: Opening of the Sovereign House
Building Project in Bloemfontein


Premier - Winkie Direko
Mayor - Papi Mokoena,
Ian Robertson - BMW SA's Managing Director,
Bill Lynch - Imperial Holdings Executive Chairman,
Andrew Scholtz, Sovereign House Building Project Leader,
MC - Vuyo Mbuli,
Ladies and Gentleman,

It gives me great pleasure to be addressing such a gathering in this state-of-the-art structure built through the hard work and dedication of the community in this area.

It is particularly gratifying that this magnificent work of art owes its existence to a 100 percent black owned project!

Even more heart warming about the Sovereign House Building Project is the participation by 1700 people, including a number with disabilities, from previously disadvantage communities, who not only earned money but at the same time have acquired valuable skills.

I must make special mention of the project leader, Andrew Scholtz, who, from humble beginnings but fired by a vision, negotiated the purchase of this piece of land and finally got it from the council. This is a classic example of success where once there may have only been dreams!

Together with his team, they negotiated a ten-year lease with Imperial Holdings and this ultra modern building now houses BMW cars. What is at once exciting but also challenging about this project is that it has broken into an area that was previously controlled by only a handful of white people.

I cannot stress enough the need to promote more black entrepreneurs in this country to ensure a better life for all its people. Whilst we celebrate the past ten years of Democracy, it is evident that more work needs to be done in this area.

The number of skilled professionals and middle managers has not grown as fast as we would have liked. The pace of extending black ownership also needs to be accelerated, even though an estimate of black equity in companies indicates 9,4 percent in 2002, compared with 3,9 percent in 1997.

In a Province with almost 30 percent unemployment, but with vast potential, this R25 million Sovereign House Building Project quite clearly opens other avenues for emerging black business in the Free State.

I must congratulate BMW, Imperial Holdings and the Sovereign House Development for their sterling work in bringing together the many groups from the previously disadvantaged communities into such a significant project.

This, I am told, is the first development of its kind by black businessman in Bloemfontein, and I would urge you not to stop here.

I would hope that the consortium that put this magnificent effort together has also included women, as we in Government urge everyone in our country not to pay mere lip service to the empowerment of women, but to address it directly and through active participation.

Projects like this one also fall in line with Government's policy to confront the issue of skilling the unskilled in the informal economy by utilizing labour intensive construction.

As Government we are grappling, in a very serious way, with the challenge of reducing the number of people dependent on grants.

The ANC Government, in the coming five years, will move into top gear to drive our black economic empowerment efforts into the fast lane to ensure that our people benefit from it.

As you are aware by now, the ANC Government has announced that R15 BILLION will be allocated for BEE.

We have also said that, together with state-owned enterprises, we will put aside a massive R100 BILLION into improving the country’s infrastructure, which will not only absorb the unemployed but also boost our economy which is already growing at a rate of 2,8 percent a year from the negative growth when the ANC took over in 1994.

We will continue to pursue our prudent macro-economic policies to achieve our goals of a more stable currency and lower interest rates.

The ANC remains convinced that this is the right route to take in addressing the legacies of apartheid.

I am sure that companies like Imperial Holdings will attest to the fact that South Africa is an attractive investment destination or else it could not boast of the massive R1 billion rand turnover as it did recently.

Similarly, BMW South Africa's R1bn investment at the Rosslyn plant has yielded some positive results and turned it into a plant capable of producing customised cars for use across the globe.

BMW took another leap of faith in the country when it recently announced the decision to invest a further R2 billion.

This is because, as it says, it is expecting a substantial increase in BMW's export capacity to R50 billion worth of exports from this country.

Let me also be the first to congratulate Andrew’s announcement this evening to establish the Development Trust Fund which will assist emerging entrepreneurs. Once again, I would hope that this Fund will pay special attention to the development of women.

Such initiatives can contribute immensely towards achieving our target of halving the number of unemployed people by the year 2014.

I am certain that many of you here will agree with me that South Africa has every reason to celebrate its Ten Years of Democracy.

I believe, together, we can make the second decade an even better one for all South Africa’s people.

I thank you!

Department of Public Enterprises
January 30, 2004