Author: Midcham Newsletters

Amazing Race Middelburg – Entries close soon!

Amazing Race Middelburg – Entries close soon!

Time is coming close for the Amazing Race Middelburg happening in less than a month! If you have not heard of it before, allow us to explain.

First of all, it is not a running race if that’s what you thought! Think of it more as a treasure hunt on steroids. Bring your teammates and work up your appetite on National Braai Day, 24 September 2022 which promises to be loads of fun! This year, the race will start at the Middelburg Outreach Festival @ Rustique Boutique Hotel at 08:00.

Teams of 4 people will race through town in their own vehicle, solving clues to take them from place to place where contestants need to complete mental and/or physical challenges until you reach the finish line!  You will test your skills and knowledge of the town. We will lead you to various points ranging  from local businesses, tourist attractions, and historically significant places.

There are great prizes to be won!

All you need to do is complete the entry form and pay your early bird R600/team entry fee before the closing date of 1 September.  If you enter two teams you get a discount fee of R500/team.  Entries received from 2 September is R700/team.  Entries close on 20 September.

The competition is open to businesses, private groups and families alike. All ages 10-90 welcome! Entries are limited, so don’t delay! Entry forms can be obtained at the Middelburg Information Centre office, 292 Walter Sisulu Street or by sending an e-mail to marketing@middelburginfo.com.  Online entries can be done through the Facebook page @amazeraceMid

Companies who would still like to get involved as a sponsor or be part of the route can contact Elsabe on 0849832819 or send an email for more details.

We celebrated the Wit and Wisdom of Women

We celebrated the Wit and Wisdom of Women

The Middelburg Chamber’s annual Women’s Day event was a glorious celebration of women and what we care about.

Thanks to the generous sponsorship of Nashua, Twizza, Lizwile Engineering, Hermansdal Landgoed, Alveston Manor Spa, Jonsson Wear, Columbus Stainless, Reena’s Linen-N-Luggage, Thos Begbie, PWC, MRP, Abafazi Ne Bhodo and Toda Products, your support ensured the tremendous success of the event. A special thank you goes to Nomvula Mokoena, AKA DJ Sunshine, our MC for the day, and to our motivational speaker Diana Jansen.

One hundred and forty ladies attended our event and socialized, danced, and recharged their batteries for the year ahead. May the Almighty God bless you abundantly. And you, dear women, let us do it again the following year, 2023.

GALAXY BINGO supports tennis in Witbank

GALAXY BINGO supports tennis in Witbank

Galaxy Bingo is one of South Africa’s leading and innovative gaming groups, with an impressive portfolio of 23 Bingo sites conveniently located across six provinces. Their hospitality portfolio comprises of 6 Galaxy Grills and 2 Galaxy Bistros, where you can enjoy delicious and tempting meals. Galaxy Bingo has a passion for sports development and nurturing young talent.

Because of this passion, Galaxy Bingo Emalahleni has sponsored 32 Witbank High School children (16 boys and 16 girls) with tennis coaching every Monday and Wednesday at their school courts. The children have also received new tennis rackets, tennis balls and T-shirts. The tennis programme aims to develop young talent and provide children with the opportunity to play in the tennis league in the 3rd quarter. A tennis league is an annual event.

The kids will also receive coaching life skills from the KPM Academy of Sport and life skills.

KPM has been an NPO based at the Middelburg Country Club for 11 years, giving children an opportunity to play, learn and score through sports. KPM Sports Academy helps children improve their mental skills, keeping them healthy, learn sportsmanship and ethics as well as life skills.

KPM has various initiatives to develop children playing sports in wheelchairs, specifically wheelchair tennis, which has recently been on TV https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VSfRILUcRCc. Many South African children still struggle with basic needs, and sadly, this lack hampers their dreams and leaves them with no option but to resort to crime.

There is hope as NPOs give children opportunities of becoming better people. Kids News’ Didi Mookeletsi caught up with youngsters at the KPM Mentorship Centre in Avalon, Middelburg. For more news, visit sabcnews.com and #SABCNews on all Social Media platforms.

SANParks is open for bookings in June/July 2023

SANParks is open for bookings in June/July 2023
For your personal SANPARKS booking, come to the Tourist Office in Middelburg, where we have lots of information about the National Parks and you can speak to a member of staff personally about your holiday.

The South African National Parks (SANParks) offers a wide range of accommodation in South Africa and the Middelburg Information Centre is one of SANParks’ satellite offices in Middelburg, Mpumalanga. We provide a fast, effective and efficient service at all times. We have access to all Sanparks, not just the Kruger National Park, so planning a holiday for you is just a phone call away.
South African National Parks (SANParks) is currently offering 40% off selected parks and camps.

The park is filling up fast; let us help you book your accommodation before it’s too late.
For more information, call 013 243 2253 or email: info@middelburginfo.com

Great networking event with Twizza Business Breakfast

Great networking event with Twizza Business Breakfast
The business world connects and networks with a buzz. The Twizza Breakfast Buzz was a great success. Members of the Middelburg Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) enjoyed meeting and networking with other business people at the Twizza plant. The days of isolation and social distancing are over, and personal and business contacts are made at the monthly Business Buzz events. Christ Swartz and the Twizza team showed how the company started and how it has developed into the company it is today.

The next Business Buzz will be held on 18 August 2022 and will be hosted by Isuzu. Invitations will be sent out in the first week of August. RSVP as soon as possible.  For more information or to host a Business Buzz, please contact Mmabatho or Christo at the MCCI office on 013 243 2253 or email info@middelburginfo.com

Middelburg hosts its own JET for Business

Middelburg hosts its own JET for Business
The Middelburg Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) is hosting a Just Energy Transition Congress, Just for Business, on 28 September 2022 at the Steve Tshwete Banquet Hall.

Since the Just Energy Transition (JET) concept was introduced, numerous studies have been conducted to discover how JET will affect communities. Much of the academic research focused on the skills and education levels in the Highveld region of Mpumalanga. In the meantime, the business community has started to investigate the impact JET will have on their future and how they can ensure the success and sustainability of their businesses. Many companies are already involved in green energy and have developed business products and solutions.

MCCI invites all businesses to our JET for Business Congress. We need to talk to each other about what we need and what products and solutions are available. If you have a great product or solution, please contact me to find out how your business can participate at ceo@middelburginfo.com or 013 243 2253.

Come and celebrate the wit and wisdom of all women

Come and celebrate the wit and wisdom of all women


It is with great pleasure that we would like to share that the Middelburg Chamber of Commerce and Industry invites you to its annual Women’s Day Celebration with women in business.

This annual event is a popular socializing and networking event in the business calendar, and we make every effort to again organize a first-class event. We only have a limited number of places so booking is essential. Entertainment … Live music / food and drinks / dance competition / gifts / games.

Date: 12 August 2022
Booking Fee: R375 P.P

Venue: Hermansdal Landgoed
Theme: Bridgerton (Regency)

To book or enquire about the event, you can contact Mmabatho Phathakge on 03 243 2253 or email: info@middelburginfo.com

Steinmüller – June 2022 Business Buzz

Steinmüller – June 2022 Business Buzz

The Middelburg Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) enjoyed meeting and networking with other business people; everyone missed the personal connections made at the monthly Business Buzz events.

The first Business Buzz was hosted by Steinmüller, a business that has been in the area for many years. Ryan Botha from Steinmüller gave us a brief overview of some of their equipment.  They also demonstrated a close-range drone.  The drone can inspect equipment in five minutes instead of days, as there is no need to set up scaffolding to reach areas that are far from the ground.

The next business networking event will be a Business Breakfast hosted by Twizza on 21 July 2022. Invitations will be sent out in the first week of July; RSVP as soon as possible as only people with RSVP’d will be allowed to attend.

For more information or to host a Business Buzz, please contact Mmabatho or Christo at the MCCI office on 013 243 2253 or email info@middelburginfo.com.

Comment on 14 June 2022 Municipal Strike 

Comment on 14 June 2022 Municipal Strike 

The lack of service delivery by Steve Tshwete Municipality is intolerable. Many of the services provided have not been adequately delivered since 25 March 2020, when the norm was to work (or not work) from home. Covid19 Lockdown has broken the municipality and created a culture of poor work performance.

The STLM leadership has given the strikers the power to ruin our town by giving in to their demands. Essential and vital services to the business community are not being provided. The current situation cannot be allowed to continue. Ignoring the complaints and demands of the businesses does not mean that the problems will miraculously disappear; no, the situation will worsen. The state of affairs creates an ideal environment for corruption and bribes. Also, why are the strikers allowed to use municipal vehicles as transport for the strike?

MCCI is asking the business community: are you satisfied? Will the problems be miraculously fixed once STLM is working again? Nowhere in business will a problem disappear if you ignore it, you have to work on the problem to solve it. Your silence means you agree with the municipalities decisions and lack of service. Significant future investments and developments are being hampered by the political gamesmanship of our STLM leadership and councillors.

Perhaps we should look at what STLM services can be outsourced to make the economy work? MCCI will ask the various political parties to meet with the Executive Committee to find a solution to make our city fully functional and attractive for investment.

Mpumalanga lagging behind with IPPs

Mpumalanga lagging behind with IPPs

Keynote speakers said at the Mpumalanga Energy Summit 2022 hosted by the Mpumalanga Provincial Government and the Mpumalanga Green Cluster Agency that there are no IPP projects in Mpumalanga. A few things have happened since the last week of May.

Countless meetings, discussions and talks about the Just Energy Transition are being held. The change in Eskom’s operating model could affect many local businesses. At a recent stakeholder meeting, information about projects to be implemented at Komati Power Station regarding the solar power plant and battery storage centre that Eskom plans to install by the end of the year.

In the meantime, Andre de Ruyter has announced that Eskom will implement projects to feed 1,800 MW of renewable electricity into the national grid at no cost to the government. Eskom selected 18 companies that will be allowed to lease vacant land from the power utility for projects to feed renewable energy into the grid.

Earlier this year, Eskom opened the tender process to access the vacant land it owns to expand renewable energy capacity in the country. Eskom selected the preferred companies for the projects only a few months later. These companies will have direct access to the national grid, with the lease lasting at least 20 years. The land leases will be on a commercial basis, with Eskom receiving a portion of the revenue from the lease of the land, while the projects will enter into sales contracts for the electricity with third parties. The current bids are for about 4 000 hectares (ha) of the total 36 000 ha available under the programme. Once connected, the current projects will bring online a total generation capacity of 1 800 MW.

While the municipality of Steve Tshwete and its employees are fighting amongst themselves, other towns and municipalities are seizing the opportunities. All that we are concerned about whether our Licensing Department is open. Now is the worst time to lose focus on opportunities to bring investment to our town.