Category: March 2019 Newsletter

The Middelburg Chamber of Commerce and Industry had an opportunity for complimentary management and leadership courses. Our partnership with WITS Business School and Services SETA has over the years ensured more than 700 bursaries be allocated in Middelburg and surrounding towns in Mpumalanga.

This year 250 bursaries were sponsored by Services Seta. In partnership with the Middelburg Chamber of Commerce and Wits Business School. Community individuals and businesses were benefited.

Proudly supporting our local community.

Don’t miss the next Opportunity.

Contact the Chamber now.

Shine your light on South Africa’s Economy

The Middelburg Chamber of Commerce and Industry had another successful economic breakfast with the Emalahleni businesses at The Ridge on the 19^th of March 2019. The event was graced by Isaac Matshego who is a Nedbank Economist; he shared a broad view on our South African economy.

“We’ve seen the local economy started to improve by the end of 2018. Last year’s growth number was slightly stronger than what was expected,” said Matshego. “Our economy had just started to improve when the Eskom’s Load Shedding started, and together with the political uncertainty business confidence is under pressure.” He also said that even though personal taxes were not raised for the next tax year, the added carbon fuel tax and road accident levy could curb any economic growth.

Business knows how to operate under difficult economic conditions, and we will come out stronger. MCCI would like to extend our thanks to The Ridge for sponsoring this event and to Isaac Matshego for sharing his great insight on the economy with the Emalahleni Business community. For more information contact the office 013 243 2253

The Middelburg Chamber of Commerce and Industry would like to thank everyone that attended our 116^th Banquet; it’s because of you the Banquet was a great success.

We want to thank our keynote speaker Professor Justine Limpitlaw, Electronic Communications Law Consultant, Visiting Adjunct Professor, LINK Centre, University of the Witwatersrand; She spoke about the Fourth Industria Revolution and the Green Economy.  Professor Limpitlaw gave us an outsiders view of our town’s future.

Thank you to our primary sponsors were Columbus Steel, Event City, Nashua Mpumalanga, and Twizza, and our other sponsors include Life Midmed Hospital, Loskopdam – A Forever Resort, MRP Registered Accountants,PWC, SMS – All Events Hire, Think Sol, SSS – Executive Risk Control, Vista Wa Seroka, Thos Begbie & Co (Pty) Ltd, Touch of Gold .

Our members are essential to remain relevant; thank you for your on-going support. Together we will keep on building a better town for the future.

Four new Bills for SA

Following much input in both Houses of Parliament, the National Assembly agreed to the following four (4) bills:

(1)  National Health Laboratory Service  Amendment Bill  The bill seeks to improve governance, accountability and financial sustainability of the National Health Laboratory Service.

(2)  Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences Amendment Bill

The bill aims to promote a system that, while promoting efficient prosecution of offenses, encourages drivers to obey the rules. an

(3)  Protection, Promotion, Development, and Management of Indigenous Knowledge Bill

The key objectives of the Bill are to protect, promote, develop and manage indigenous knowledge systems, the knowledge of indigenous communities and indigenous knowledge-based innovation.

(4)  Critical Infrastructure Protection Bill

This bill replaces the apartheid-era National Key Points Act of 1980. Key features of the Bill include providing for identifying and declaring specific infrastructure as critical.

The National Assembly initially considered these Bills in its committees, after the public had an opportunity to make inputs and study them. The four bills were sent to President Cyril Ramaphosa for his signature.  Members interested in more information should contact our secretariat at secretary@middelburginfo.com

It is exactly 30 Days till the annual Africa’s Travel Indaba 2019 kicks off! And we are more than ready to for one of the biggest travel and tourism exhibitions in South Africa. This year the Middelburg Tourism Centre will be joining hands with Nkangala District and the Mpumalanga Tourism Association, and take everything Middelburg and surroundings have to offer to Durban and the international buyers. We are looking forward to another successful relationship building exhibition at the ICC in Durban.

Follow our Facebook page for more information on the Indaba and to get a first glance of everything Middelburg has to offer the rest of South Africa!

The parking area around the Middelburg Post Office is unsafe, and the public that has to use this government facility is an easy target for the criminals. Something needs to be done.

Middelburg has been discussing how unsafe it was to go to the Middelburg Post Office for years. It seems that these complaints were not taken seriously by the Post Office, SAPS or the Traffic Department of Steve Tshwete Municipality.  The safety of citizens going to the Post Office is especially essential when you take into account that Social Grants are paid out at this Post Office.  Our vulnerable community then becomes the target of criminals.  It seems that you now need to have an armed guard with you when you want to collect your mail.  A staff member of MCCI was attacked, on Monday, 18 March, and the criminals tried to hijack her vehicle.

MCCI facilitated a meeting to address this problem early last year. The MMC for Safety and Security of Cape Town Municipality, JP Smith identified many concrete solutions, and at that meeting, several organisations agreed that the solutions offered seemed cost-effective and practical.  CCTV is costly and requires a specific solution that involves capital layout; a dedicated workforce links to law enforcement.  On the other hand, the proposed Peace Officers would be less expensive, create jobs, and increase visible policing, which is the only practical way to reduce crime.

As a government institution, the safety of the public should be paramount, inside and outside the building.  The various local, provincial and national departments need to work together to keep our citizens safe.  Business is committed, but we cannot do the work of government.

The Middelburg Chamber of Commerce & Industry (MCCI) has extended our digital promotions, and we are offering to share our successes with our members by utilizing the full power of social media networking and digital marketing.

MCCI is making it incredibly easy for members to benefit; all you must do is reach out to us – and leave the rest in our hands. With wireless internet and access to free wi-fi hotspots popping up around town – means that even more people are accessing social media channels such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter every day to connect with their community.

We have already seen remarkable growth in our Social networking interactions. Our Facebook page interactions (How many people visit our page) has grown from a mere 900 users a month to over 13 000 users — by advertising in our Local Business Guide, hosting a Business Buzz or by just becoming affiliated with the Chamber you are already included in our Networking nexus. The 4^th Industrial Revolution is about being connected – and we want to connect you.

Over the last 116 years, we’ve had many exciting projects that have impacted our town in great ways. We believe in creating and supporting a prosperous community. Moreover, we think that this is the next step in continuing that legacy.

Contact our offices on 013 243 2253 to get in touch.