The Gauteng Provincial Government will finalise work on a comprehensive broad-based black economic empowerment (BEE) strategy for the province by the middle of the year, Gauteng Premier Mbhazima Shilowa said yesterday at the opening of the Gauteng Legislature.

The strategy, which is in line with national legislation and policy, will ensure that, by 2009, between 60% and 70% of government procurement will be done through broad-based BEE companies.

Procurement by hospitals and schools will also be done using this strategy.

Shilowa said that this will require support for small and emerging enterprises so that they are able to tender for government work. Established companies will also have to comply with the requirements of BEE charters in their sectors if they want to do business with government.

“We need to send a clear message that the time for white monopoly capital to pay lip service to economic transformation and empowerment, especially for women, is past, and will not be rewarded in Gauteng,” he said.

In terms of the development of transport infrastructure in the province, Shilowa said that, by November this year, the Gauteng government will have put in place the key pillars of a transport system that will be able to meet the challenges of the 2010 soccer World Cup, and ensure the speedy and cost-effective movement of goods and people around the province.

This will include a review of the current road network and development of a revised road network; the development of an affordable, accessible, reliable and safe public transport system; a review of the current public transport subsidy system and the introduction of intelligent transport systems and mechanisms to coordinate and align various modes of transport.

This process will also take into account the considerable implications and opportunities of the Gautrain for the rest of the transport system, Shilowa said.

He also said that an announcement on the preferred bidder for the Gautrain will be made by the end of April this year.

“Together with national government, we remain committed to ensure that this important project is completed in time for the Fifa soccer World Cup in 2010,” the Premier said.

Before the end of May this year, a Gauteng intergovernmental summit on infrastructure development will also be convened.

The summit, to be attended by all spheres of government and parastatals operating in Gauteng, will examine how resources can be combined on infrastructure projects.

“Together with municipalities, we will also look at how we can, over the next five years, focus our combined resources to pave all untarred streets in 20 established townships and build commercial hubs at taxi ranks and other transport nodes,” Shilowa said.

In May this year, the province will launch its growth and development strategy which will require the active involvement of all sectors of society, and will serve as a guide in the achievement of integrated and sustainable growth and development in Gauteng.

“We believe that the implementation of our new growth and development strategy in the context of our plan to make Gauteng a globally competitive city region by all stakeholders, will put us in a strong position to achieve an economic growth rate of 8% by 2014,” Shilowa said.

In line with the approach adopted by national government, Gauteng province will be publishing quarterly updates on the Internet on progress in the implementation of our Five Year Strategic Programme and the programmes of action outlined.

“The legislature needs to define its role in helping the government implement the programme we have outlined, as well as hold us accountable to our own undertakings,” Shilowa concluded.