AT the Premier’s Investment Breakfast during Auto Week 2025, Nonkqubela Pieters, Eastern Cape MEC for Economic Development, Environmental Affairs and Tourism (EDEAT) underscored the province’s special economic zones (SEZ) and industrial development zones (IDZ) as anchors of industrialisation, job creation, and global trade, positioning the province as South Africa’s ‘Detroit’ and a magnet for future investment.
While highlighting the province’s competitive strengths, industry leaders urged greater collaboration between government and business to safeguard investments and sustain growth.
Key calls from the sector included:
- Improving infrastructure at local and municipal level to support competitiveness.
- Creating a more enabling regulatory environment that reduces costs and uncertainty.
- Ensuring that provincial government leads by example in buying local to stimulate demand
The panel agreed that closing the gap between government and industry will help avoid surprises, build resilience, and enable joint lobbying on critical issues.
In a separate panel on attracting new investment for South Africa’s auto manufacturing sector, Mickey Mama, EDEAT head of department, reiterated the importance of policy and incentive certainty, being responsive to fundamental shifts in the sector, and tackling barriers such as logistics and infrastructure bottlenecks.
In an online post, the EDEAT said the message was clear: the Eastern Cape has the advantage, but partnership is key to unlocking its full potential in driving South Africa’s automotive future.
