South African officials to study Special Economic Zone in China

Twenty South African officials will attend a month-long training on Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in the Chinese city of Tianjin.

The officials are responsible for creating and managing SEZs in South Africa, Minister of Trade and Industry, Rob Davies said on Thursday.

Davies said South Africa had introduced a SEZs program in order to accelerate industrialization as part of efforts to address socio-economic challenges including unemployment, poverty and under-development.

Part of an agreement signed by South Africa and China in 2014, the training program aims to take up to 30 officials to China per year.

The program is expected to equip the officials with the know-how on the planning, development, management and operations of SEZs, said Davies.

"The program is important to ensure that all stakeholders have the technical know-how required for the successful development of the SEZs in South Africa," he said.

He said a major challenge facing the implementation of the SEZs program in South Africa was "capacity constraint" within local governments.

He said provinces and municipalities would require "significant support" from the Department of Trade and Industry for the program to be successful.

"It is this background that the department deemed it necessary to design and implement a systematic Capacity Building Program on the Special economic Zones (with China) in order to create a pool of skilled and trained officials.

"The country (China) is regarded as one of the best in the world when it comes to the implementation of the SEZs model. Our officials will be greatly empowered by being exposed to the zones in China and how they are managed," the minister said.

The training covers a range of topics including planning, infrastructure development, marketing tools and channels, how to deal with potential investors, as well as the financing and managing of the SEZs.

The officals will leave for China on Friday. Endit