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Cabinet has approved the decision by the Minister of Trade and Industry, Dr Rob Davies, to designate the Atlantis Special Economic Zone in Atlantis Industrial Area, outside Cape Town in the Western Cape Province. The designation of the Atlantis SEZ follows that of the Saldanha Bay Industrial Development Zone and is intended to promote industrial development along the West Coast Corridor.

This was after the Special Economic Zones Advisory Board was satisfied with the rationale and scale of economic opportunities in the region, and recommended that the Minister of Trade and Industry designate the proposed area and grant a Special Economic Zones Licence to the Western Cape Provincial Department of Economic Opportunities.

The Special Economic Zones Advisory Board’s recommendations were followed up by extensive public consultation processes with community members, business associations and multi-stakeholder interest groups, which all supported the designation of Atlantis SEZ.

Cabinet approved the designation of the Atlantis Green-Technology SEZ on condition that the priority should be given to the community of Atlantis in terms of jobs and SMME empowerment, and there must be a labour and community representatives in the SEZ board of the management entity established to develop and manage the zone.

A Special Economic Zone (SEZ) is an economic development tool to promote national economic growth and export by using support measures in order to attract targeted foreign and domestic investments and technology.
 
Occupying the land area of 124.5 ha, the proposed Atlantis SEZ will be positioned as a “Green-tech” Manufacturing Hub. The Atlantis SEZ is intended for the manufacturing of “green technology components and services”, such as solar PV components; wind turbine blades; wind turbine towers; solar water heaters; basic components; smart meters; rooftop PV; biomass components; waste to energy components; batteries and other PV storage components .
 
According to Minister Davies the development of the Atlantis SEZ Hub will go a long way in reviving the economic fortunes of Atlantis, which is currently characterised by many socio-economic challenges such as unemployment and drug abuse. Minister Davies further stated that the designated Atlantis Special Economic Zone is in line with President Cyril Ramaphosa’s drive to attract investments into the South African economy and help turnaround the economic trajectory of the country.
 
“The designated Atlantis SEZ has significantly attracted investments of over R680 million in the form of green-tech industrial component manufacturers, which are anchored by an International FDI. This investment has added about 500 direct jobs in the Western Cape’s economy. This is in line with the Industrial Policy Action Plan (IPAP) which has identified SEZs as strategic interventions designed to accelerate economic development through greater investment, export volumes and job creation,” added Minister Davies.
 
The Department of Trade and Industry (the dti) has provided technical and financial support to the value of about R30 million to the Western Cape Provincial Government over the past five years towards preparatory work, capacity building and investment attraction drive.
 
As part of ensuring that Atlantis SEZ opportunities benefit the previously disadvantaged members of the Atlantis community, Minister Rob Davies and his Deputy Minister respectively engaged with Atlantis business people and community members on the 24 April 2018 and 11-12 May 2018.
 
Minister Davies concluded by confirming existence of continuous engagement between the dti; Western Cape’s Provincial Government and the City of Cape Town to ensure that local Atlantis business people and general community benefits from the opportunities presented by the Atlantis SEZ.
 
Issued by Department of Trade and Industry