Photojournal - MEC Winde visits Ffestiniog

In Early November, Minister Alan Winde visited the Ffestiniog Railway in Wales. Whilst there, he toured the railway's stations, Works and platforms. He also engaged with several high level members of the Railway, who gave excellent advice on methods to save the Choo-Tjoe, and make it an economically viable operation.

Above: The Ffestiniog emblem emblazened proudly on one of its trains

Above: A engineer at Boston Lodge Works (possibly the oldest works in the world) saws a very large bolt in half

Above: Tammy sitting on "Prince"

Above: the plate as you step onto a newly built loco

Above: MEC Winde inspects an original Suid-Afrikaanse Spoorwee plate at Ffestiniog's pub

MEC Winde pleased that Choo-Tjoe back on track

MEC Winde buys his ticket for the Choo-Tjoe

The return of the Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe celebration was held on 19 October 2009. Ms Cynthia Mgijima, Head: Transnet Foundation, performed the welcome address and dedicated the celebration to the operational return of the Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe, which had been discontinued for routine maintenance per regulator safety requirements on 30 June 2009.

Ms Mgijima said: "The first two restored coaches would be used today with the remaining three being completed by the end of the month. She also said: "Today demonstrated Transnet’s commitment to preserve the future of the Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe. She concluded by saying: "The Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe brings joy, hope and anticipation of change to ordinary people’s lives."

Mr Morne Hoogbaard, Acting Municipal Manager for Eden District Municipality said that the Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe will also be enjoyed by the 2010 supporters and the Eden District Municipality expresses their commitment to making sure that "the train will blow out steam." Mr Hoogbaard said: "The Eden District Municipality, in consultation with other municipalities, had agreed to the appointment of a project manager to facilitate funding for the Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe within the next few weeks." Mr Hoogbaard also said that "the three spheres of Government should work together to ensure that the Choo-Tjoe remains one of their icons."

Mr Alan Winde, Minister of Finance, Economic Development & Tourism said in his address that this was a very special tourism occasion. He thanked Transnet most sincerely for being committed to the preservation of this heritage rail icon despite it no longer forming part of their core business. Minister said: "The Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe is an icon that is known around the world and we must make sure that we preserve it for our children and our childrens’ children."

Minister Winde gave the undertaking that Provincial Government would market the Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe through Cape Town Routes Unlimited. The Minister said that the Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe newsletter was designed to keep all interested parties informed of progress in finding a private funder for the train.

Minister Winde said that he would be visiting the United Kingdom in November and was in the process of scheduling meetings with key vintage railway stakeholders to gain experience for implementation in South Africa.

Minister Winde said that the Provincial government fully supported Transnet’s next phase of commitment, which was putting out expressions of interest through a public participation process to attract potential investors.

The Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe Train left from the Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe Transport Museum over the picturesque Kwang River, snaked over the Great and Little Brak Rivers and ended its trip outside the Diaz Museum in Mossel Bay.

Mr Neels Zietsman, Chairman of Mossel Bay Tourism welcomed the guests and introduced the Acting Mayor of Mossel Bay Municipality, Mr Harry Ebendal who in turn introduced Mr Johan Gelderblom from National Parliament. Mr Gelderblom said that the return of the Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe, with enthusiastic marketing, becomes an important economic generator.

The event hosted by Transnet Foundation was attended by Transnet officials, representatives from Provincial Government, Eden District Municipality, George Municipality and Tourism, Mossel Bay Municipality and Tourism, UATA, SA Rail, HRASA, Media and various tour operators.

Third time lucky! Liquor Amendment Bill out for public comment

The Western Cape Liquor Amendment Bill was published for comment on the 16th of October 2009.

This is the next step in the Provincial Government's plan to put in place legislation that will address both the problem of the liquor trade in the Province being largely unregulated, and the scourge of alcohol abuse that continues to exact a terrible toll on our economy and the inhabitants of the Province.

The Amendment Bill addresses some concerns that were raised by the national Minister of Trade and Industry, the SAPS and the City of Cape Town with regard to the Act. These concerns, in a nutshell, relate to the following:

(a) The national Minister would not agree to promulgation of the Act until the provision that would allow a special event liquor licence to be granted to a school was removed. This has been done.

(b) The SAPS was of the view that the licence application process had to amended so that applications must be lodged with the designated liquor officer at the time it is lodged with the Liquor Board. This amendment was effected, since it would speed up the application process, reducing the time applicants will have to wait to get an outcome.

(c) The City of Cape Town’s insisted that the determination of trading times fell within its competence. This has also been included in the Amendment Bill.

In addition to these, a number of other amendments are proposed. These relate mainly to name changes (the Board becomes the Western Cape Liquor Authority, and the Board now refers to the governing body of the Authority). Although the majority of the sections of the Act are affected by the Amendment Bill, most of the changes relate to these name changes.

Lastly, a number of corrections to cross-references were made.

The Amendment Bill does not, in any way, affect this government’s approach to liquor regulation:


· We are still determined to ensure that liquor establishments will, under this legislation, not be allowed to operate within residential areas.

· We will still take whatever is necessary to ensure that communities are:

- better informed of new licence applications
- given a platform to make their objections known;
- given the tolls, ensure that operators who fail to adhere to licence conditions and the law are dealt with quickly, efficiently and, where circumstances so demand, severely.

· Furthermore, we will still seek to ensure that the police and other law enforcement agencies, including the Liquor Authority’s Inspectorate, are given the powers and tools to manage, and if need be, close liquor establishments in the Province.

The approach taken in/by the Act with regard to addressing the social ills caused by the industry remains the same – the government is unwavering in its commitment to ensure that the industry acknowledges the harm caused by the product it sells, and commit funds and other resources to curb and contain those negatives; that consumers and the general public become more knowledgeable on issues of liquor abuse, irresponsible trading and responsible consumption, and options available to them to intervene. In the words of the current awareness campaign by this and other liquor authorities around the country: “Liquor regulation is everybody’s business”, not only those who trade in and consume the product.

Quick note from Minister Winde

Well done to Cape Town Routes Unlimited, the Western Cape's destination marketing organisation, for hosting a fantastic open day!

WORLD TOURISM DAY

I would like to urge all Capetonians to go for a walk on the beach or up a mountain trail this World Tourism Day. Afterwards, visit a restaurant in a different suburb or picnic at one of our botanical gardens - Go out and experience one of the varied cultures that the Cape has to offer.

Choo-Tjoe News - edition 5!

STILL WAITING FOR TRANSNET ...

In August, Transnet made assurances that they would have the Choo-Tjoe up and running by the 1^st of October. With that deadline fast approaching, we got in touch with them, and after apologising, they told us that there had been a further delay, and that the Choo-Tjoe will now be relaunched in mid-October.

We are anxiously awaiting the moment, and Minister Winde will travel to the Garden Route to see our icon in action again.

Ever since Minister Winde called on the public to come forward with suggestions on how to save the Choo-Tjoe, we have heard stories of volunteers’ efforts to restore the Rheilffordd Ffestiniog Railway in Wales. We found these anecdotes of collaboration and willpower particularly inspiring, and in November this year, Minister Winde will travel to Britain to see this beauty first hand, and hear about how its restoration was completed so successfully.

Minister Winde will also meet with Sir William McAlpine, best known for his work with the Flying Scotsman. From both visits, Minister Winde hopes to gain insight into the restoration and operation of steam locomotives like our own Choo-Tjoe, and will travel back to the Western Cape to inform his team about his discoveries.

As soon as we have a date for the expressions of interest meeting, we will communicate that to you. In the meantime, it would be great to see you at the re-launch of the Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe in mid-October (we will send you an e-mail once the official date has been communicated to us by Transnet).

Please call at 021 483 3531, or e-mail finmin@pgwc.gov.za, to give your input on how we can save the train.

MEC Winde encourages learners at Careers Expo to become doctors, engineers and teachers

Top: Minister of Finance, Economic development and Tourism, Alan Winde and Alderman Belinda Walker from the City of Cape Town chat to a student signing up on the Career Planet job portal.

Bottom: Minister Winde and Alderman Walker discuss ways to create employment opportunities

Agribusiness Investment Unit boosts industry

Toasting the new initative (from left to right): Joyene Isaacs, Head of Agriculture Department, Minister Alan Winde, Minister Gerrit van Rensburg and Rameez Johar form WESGRO

Wesgro, the Western Cape’s official Trade and Investment Promotion Agency in collaboration with the Department of Agriculture launched an exciting investment initiative on the 1^st September 2009, referred to as the Agribusiness Investment Unit. Issued with the mandate of attracting domestic and foreign direct Investment into the Western Cape agricultural sector, the unit will renew interest in this dynamic industry.

The fledgling division will fall under the wing of both Wesgro and the Department of Agriculture (the unit’s primary sponsor) as these two major players in the agri-world align their vision to develop and promote this burgeoning sector.

The unit will be responsible for locating new direct investments in the Western Cape as well as retaining existing investments and supporting their expansions. It will target and identify potential investors through proposition-based marketing in order to attract them to the Western Cape through a comprehensive programme. One of the advantages of this unit is that is able to create a more conducive external environment while also being able to service investors’ individual needs.

Agriculture is one of the major sectors of the province and close to 40% of the exports of the Western Cape is based on agricultural products. The industry is identified as the mainstay of the economy in the rural areas of the Western Cape and attracting investment into this area will have positive spin offs for other sectors in the Western Cape.

The Agribusiness Investment Unit’s function will compliment Wesgro’s vision to promote the Western Cape as the leading business destination for local and international investment.

Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Tourism, MEC Alan Winde, expressed his delight at the coming together of the two provincial departments: “This is ground-breaking initiative that will certainly facilitate economic growth in our Province. I am very pleased to be working with MEC van Rensburg on this project, as our combined budgets will facilitate a far better service to potential investors”.

Choo-Tjoe News Update!

Earlier today, Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Tourism, Alan Winde, met with the Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe Steering Committee. Present were the Mayors from Eden, George, Knysna and Mossel Bay, representatives from local tourism associations, provincial government and Transnet.

Minister Winde was informed that the maintenance presently being undertaken by Transnet on the Outeniqua Choo Tjoe is nearing completion. It is anticipated that the operations of the OCT from George to Mossel Bay will re-commence by the middle of October. We will use this occasion as an opportunity to re-launch the Choo-Tjoe, in coordination which the Municipalities and Tourism Associations in the region.

Transnet has assured Minister Winde that it will continue to operate the current service until it can be handed over to an appointed operator through an open and competitive tender process, preceded by an information and awareness session

that will be jointly facilitated by the Provincial Government of the Western Cape and Transnet. The purpose of the information and awareness session will be to provide a briefing to all stakeholders, affected parties and the private sector on the call for Expressions of Interest.

It is envisaged that the process will be separated into two phases: phase one will deal with the George to Mossel Bay line, and phase two the George to Knysna line. Although the processes culminating in the handover will be operated by Transnet, agreement has been reached that the Provincial Government will be meaningfully engaged on all matters leading up to the handover.

Minister Winde is pleased with the outcome of the meeting, and said that in order to increase patronage and boost interest in the Choo-Tjoe, he will ensure that the current service is marketed extensively at provincial and local level.

First for Province as Minister Winde draws in stakeholders to discuss Tourism Investment Recruitment for the Western Cape

In a first ever for the Province, this morning (7 September 2009), Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Tourism, Alan Winde, called together representatives of government, civil society, business and labour, to strategise possible ways in which to recruit tourism investment into the Western Cape. The result of the full-day workshop, held in the very heart of the rejuvenated city centre at Mandela Rhodes Place, will be a strategy detailing where investment in the industry currently stands, where we want to go, and a plan on how to get there. The participants, gathered under the common name of the Western Cape Tourism Development Partnership, included major players such as Peter Bacon, Chairperson of the board of CTRU and Martin Kearns, CEO of Eurocape Holdings.

Minister Winde expressed his vision for tourism growth in the Workshop’s opening address: “In order to grow our slice of the tourism cake, we need to understand where we are, and how we fit into the larger economy. We need to decide on our unique so as to establish our competitive advantage, and target investment in line with that”, said Winde. “We need to decide whether we want to be a party city, a beach city or a business city. I am in favour of the combination, with business playing the lead role. In order to be taken seriously, we need to shrug off our “Slaapstad” reputation, and prove to the world that we are indeed a serious location with an excellent quality vs cost value proposition”.

Tourism contributes around 10% to the GDP of the Western Cape, a figure which illustrates the strength of this sector in generating economic activity for our Province. Globally, Africa draws a mere 3% of the US$1500 billion foreign investment market, lagging well behind Europe, South and North America, and Asia. We must look toward developing around our competitive edge, which includes our broader tourism offerings, such as craft, music, film, visual and performance arts, so that we can increase our slice of the FDI pie. In order to do so, our strategy must become more focussed, understanding of investors’ contexts’, and tailor-made.

The Western Cape Tourism Development Partnership will strive to establish the Western Cape as a destination for new markets, and as a place to do serious business.

Minister Winde issues warning to liquor traders: “The Government of the Western Cape will support responsible traders, but will nail rule breakers"

Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Tourism, Alan Winde, has embarked on a Province-wide blitz to ensure that night clubs and liquor outlets are sticking to the rules.

Last Friday (28^th August 2009), MEC Winde came to the rescue of dozens of homeowners in Oudtshoorn when he dropped in at Lev Cupid Sports Bar after midnight and confronted the management for operating outside of their licence hours. Minister Winde enraged the manager when he insisted that his sound system be turned off immediately. Police were on stand-by to provide assistance should it have been required.

Residents of the area, many of whom are teachers and school children, complained that they were suffering from ill-sleep because of the club’s habit of playing loud music into the early hours of the morning. One concerned mother informed the Minister that she had sent her daughter to her grandmother’s house during exam times because sleep-deprivation was affecting her ability to study.

While Minister Winde and the Provincial Government support operators who stick to the rules, irresponsible traders will no longer be tolerated. He emphasized that his focus will be on shutting down clubs in residential areas that he found to be in contravention of the law. Over the coming months, MEC Winde will be performing random late night raids on clubs that appear suspicious. Infringements include selling alcohol, and playing unacceptably loud music after midnight without licence to do so.

Minister Winde surprises tourism offices by performing spot-check walk-ins

Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Tourism, Alan Winde, has embarked on a province-wide campaign initiated to ensure that ahead of 2010, the Western Cape's tourism offices are performing at their best.

Over the coming months, Minister Winde will perform random spot checks of tourism bureaux around the province to see whether the highest standard of service is being offered. "Our tourism offices must be manned by staff who are experts of their local tourism offerings, and are informed on all our destination's major icons, so that they can give the best possible advice to foreign travellers visiting the Western Cape", Winde said.

Last week, Winde performed an unannounced walk-in at the V & A Waterfront's Clock Tower Centre Information Kiosk, and was greeted by pleasantly surprised staff members. The Minister found the kiosk to be in good shape, with staff that were friendly and knowledgeable. He said that he would not take it lightly if he found staff to be inefficient, and would implement positive measures such as training.

On Friday the 14th of August, Minister Winde visited the Ceres Tourism Bureau. Fortunately, the staff in Ceres were given short notice of his visit, and were very excited to meet the Minister and provide him with some highlights of their offerings.

Minister Winde would like to take this opportunity to congratulate Bushmans Kloof Wilderness Reserve and Wellness Spa in the Cedarberg for being voted by Travel & Leisure as the best hotel in the world. Winde commented that it is no surprise that our province offered the winner: "Our hospitality industry staff should all strive to achieve a level of excellence on par with that of the staff who collaboratively worked to get this marvelous result".

MEC Winde launches Western Cape Quarterly Economic Review

This morning (17 August 2009), Minister Winde launched the Provincial Government of the Western Cape's Quarterly Economic Review. Christelle Grobler, from the Bureau for Economic Research, presented up-to-date information on the state of our economy, while Professor Dave Kaplan, chief economist, commented on how the reports would be of greatest value to the SMME sector, most of which could not afford to hire financial teams to assist them. Please find an extract of the report below:

Global economic output plunged during 2008Q4 and the first quarter of 2009, as the world slipped into synchronized recession. Although signs of stabilization have since emerged, consensus seems to be that the world economy is in for a subdued return to growth with output remaining below potential over the short- to medium term. The SA economy felt the full brunt of the global recession during 2009Q1 and is forecasted to contract by 2% this year, with fairly muted growth of 2.7% projected for 2010. In view of the national economic outlook and the expected world economic conditions, the regional growth picture for 2009 is quite bleak...

Please contact the Ministry at finmin@pgwc.gov.za for a full copy of the report.

Efforts to save the Choo-Tjoe running full steam ahead

For steam train enthusiasts who missed the first two installments of our Choo-Tjoe newsletter, please e-mail finmin@pgwc.gov.za, and we will send them to you. Herewith the third:

Pressure to get the Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe back on track is certainly building!

This week, the Ministry began to get calls from the public about when the Choo-Tjoe will resume its operations between George and Mossel Bay. In media statements at the end of June, Transnet assured that the line would reopen in August. According to a representative from Transnet, this has been delayed until mid-September due to a shortage of spare parts. Minister Winde says that he is “very much looking forward to seeing our Southern Cape icon back in action, and hopes the required parts arrive soon”.

At a meeting to be held on the 21^st of this month in George, MEC Winde will brief the Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe Steering Committee on the progress we have made thus far to keep the train on track. He plans to pave the way forward for increased cooperation between his department and the Steering Committee by inviting them to become a part of our effort to find a lasting solution for the its continued operation. Our goal, as with this newsletter, is to bring all train enthusiasts together: many heads think much better than a few! On that note, thank you to all the concerned enthusiasts who have e-mailed us with suggestions and comments about the Choo-Tjoe. Your inputs are incredibly valuable to us.

UPDATE: At a meeting called by Minister Winde last month, Transnet undertook to compile an information memorandum on the Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe. We are expecting to receive that document by the end of this month, at which time we will invite the public to a special meeting where we will call for expressions of interest from private sector investors.

Minister Winde meets Bollywood superstars

From left to right: Laurence Mitchell (CEO of Cape Film Commission), Anil Kapoor (Bollywood superstar), MEC Alan Winde

Cape Town Film Industry set to experience influx of Bollywood film productions

In another significant step towards cementing its role as one of the leading global film industry destinations, Cape Town is set to become the African home of the lucrative Bollywood film production market.

According to the Western Cape Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Tourism, Alan Winde, “the successful hosting of the IPL earlier this year gave us massive exposure in India as it beamed images of our country into the homes of millions - this provided the Western Cape with a wonderful opportunity to access this significant tourism and film market. We are now actively targeting the Indian and the Middle Eastern markets, as both have huge potential”.

Yesterday, Minister Winde and the CEO of the Cape Film Commission, Laurence Mitchell, visited the set of the latest Bollywood Blockbuster to be filmed in Cape Town, “No Problem”.

“No Problem” is a Bollywood police action movie that stars major names, such as Anil Kapoor (Slum Dog Millionaire), Sanjay Dutt and Suneel Shetty.

“The fact that Cape Town and the Western Cape has been able attract these influential and leading men and women of Bollywood is to a large extent due to the fact that we are truly recognized as a global film industry destination”, Minister Winde said.

He added that the abundance of both Bollywood and Hollywood A-list actors and big budget productions coming to our Province was a signal that our film industry was well on track to becoming a key contributor to our economy. “In order to ensure that we grow this contributor even further, we need to make sure that our service offering, whether in tourism or film, is exceptional”.

Mr. Laurence Mitchell (CEO of the Cape Film Commission) said, “the Cape Film Commission has over the past 5 years worked tirelessly to attract big Hollywood and in particular Bollywood productions to Cape Town, and we are pleased that our efforts have proved successful.”

The production of “No Problem” on our shores has already had significant spin offs, with at least 80 local people being employed as crew and cast members. Our service industry has been able to provide catering, transport and security services, and the housing of crewmembers and the cast has contributed over 2000 bed nights to our hotels in the space of less than one month. Indeed, the spin-offs have benefitted our entire tourism industry.

Anil Kapoor, who plays a policeman in the movie, expressed his satisfaction at how production has progressed and said that he believes Cape Town has the right service offerings within the film industry to be able to attract large Bollywood productions.

He remained confident that with big productions such as “No Problem”, “Tasveer”, “Seasons Greetings” and others, Cape Town has become the home of Bollywood films in Africa.

According to this Bollywood superstar, Cape Town has remarkable locations, diverse cultures, wonderful weather and even world class services that are able to compete with the best in the world.

The Cape Film Commission will later in the year undertake a mission to India to cement the Western Cape’s relationship with Bollywood and directly present the film industry’s service offering to the huge Indian film market.

Welcome to the blog of the Western Cape Finance Minister

Hi, my name is Tammy Evans. I am the Media Liaison Officer of Western Cape Finance, Economic Development and Tourism Minister Alan Winde.

Ever since the Democratic Alliance won the Western Cape in April, this Province's citizens have been asking us what we are going to do for them. And rightly so. We have been mandated to run this government, by you, for your benefit, and we plan to take up that challenge with vigour.

After Minister Alan Winde was elected, he spoke to me about how he hoped to communicate with you about his goals and his progress in achieving them. He expressed a desire to reach out to more people, and spoke about giving the electorate a platform to have their say. This blog will hopefully become a vital cog in that chain. In our endeavour to become an open government that offers all its citizens a voice, we encourage you to comment on our posts, and commit to taking each and every one seriously.

We hope that you not only enjoy reading this blog, but that it also assists you with information that may be pertinent to you. We are very excited about this project, and look forward to your feedback.