Limpopo Business 2017-18 edition

LIMPOPO 

BUSINESS 

2017/18 EDITION 

THE GUIDE TO BUSINESS 

AND INVESTMENT IN 

LIMPOPO PROVINCE 

JOIN JOIN US ONLINE US ONLINE 

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Gauteng 

Musina 

Musin 

Great 

North 

Transport 

N11 

Alldays 

Blouberg 

Makhado 

N1 

Vhe 

Great North Transport (GNT) operates across members who otherwise would not generate revenue 

the length and breadth of Limpopo and on the contracted parking space. 

the eastern part of Mpumalanga. With its 

head office in Polokwane and 11 depots 

Enterprise development 

phalale based in the five districts of the province and one in Enterprise development is at the heart of socio- 

Molemole 

Bohlabele, Mpumalanga, the company transported economic development polices and strategies of the 

22-million passengers and commuters Mogalakwena 

during the national, provincial and local government. Through its 

2016/17 financial year. 

procurement spending, GNT advances the sustainable BOTSWAN R81 

development of emerging enterprises. Over the years 

ephalale Strategy 

the company has continued to procure its supplies 

GNT is a business offering primarily services. The service 

mix is standardised (scheduled services) with companies based in Limpopo. 

from emerging enterprises Capricorn 

with preference given to 

Gre 

some level of customisation (in certain cases new The company has also subcontracted Polokwane some routes 

Waterberg 

routes require customisation). The business model 

Mokopane 

to emerging bus companies and provided mentorship 

is directed towards standardisation and replication. to ensure they become sustainable beyond the critical 

GNT’s offering is both broad and deep and the years of inception. 

Lepele-Nkum 

focus is regional but the reach is international. GNT 

has both a business-to-consumer focus (scheduled Youth development 

services) and a business-to-business focus (contract The N1company partners with private and public sector 

services, hiring, advisory services). 

companies to organise business seminars focusing on 

bi 

Mookgophong young people. The annual seminar provides a platform Fetakgo 

Human resource development Lim 368 for engagements between institutions that provide 

Annually, Great North Transport recruits students for financial and non-financial N11 products and services to Thaba 

learnership and internship programmes as part of ensure that aspirant youth entrepreneurs are afforded 

human resource development for the country, Modimolle 

and an opportunity to kick-start their business ideas. 

Limpopo Province in particular. In the current year, 

Makhuduthamaga 

10 learners were Bele-Bela 

recruited and absorbed into various Great North Transport owns and operates buses at 

disciplines ranging from HR Management, Marketing the following locations: Ephraim 

and Business Development to Finance, Bela-Bela Internal Audit, 

Mogale 

IT and Operations. 

• Bapedi (Burgersfort) • Marble Hall 

Community development 

• Bushbuckridge • Motetema 

The company signs contracts with members of communities 

for overnight parking for its buses in the • Giyani 

• Phalaborwa 

(Bohlabela) • Mokopane North W 

different villages across the province. This is seen by • Hoedspruit Greater • Seshego Groblersdal 

the company as empowering to those community • Makhado • Tzaneen 

M 

POLOKWA

A 

Services 

Lephalale 

Lephalale 

Waterberg 

Mogalakwena 

Mokopane 

Musina 

R81 

Capricorn 

ZIM 

Musina 

Tshipise 

• Private hire Alldays 

Vhembe 

• Commuter services 

Blouberg 

Makhado 

• Inter-towns services 

N11 

N1 

• Cross-border partial services 

Makhado 

Greater Letaba 

Molemole 

POLOKWANE 

Polokwane 

Lepele-Nkumpi 

Tzaneen 

Greater Tzaneen 

Th 

B 

zimbi 

Thabazimbi 

est 

Vision 

Mookgophong 

Lim 368 

N1 

Modimolle 

Sekhukhune 

To be Southern Africa's preferred transport services provider Makhuduthamaga 

supporting economic 

growth and development Bele-Bela in the region. 

Ephraim 

Mission 

Bela-Bela 

Mogale 

To invest in world-class operating systems that will ensure sustainable, safe, 

consistent and dependable transport services for the benefit of our stakeholders. 

N11 

Fetakgomo-Greater 

Tubatse 

Greater Groblersdal 

Mpum 

Tel: +27 15 291 2641 | Fax: +27 15 291 2648 

Email: info@gntpassenger.co.za Gauteng | Website: www.gntpassenger.co.za 

22 Hans Van Rensburg Street, Polokwane, 0700, Limpopo, South Africa

CONTENTS 

CONTENTS 

Limpopo Business 2017/18 Edition 

Introduction 

Foreword6 

A unique guide to business and investment in Limpopo 

Limpopo welcomes investors to the 

“gateway” province 8 

A message from the Premier of Limpopo, the 

Honourable Chupu Stanley Mathabatha. 

A springboard for regional integration 10 

Limpopo Economic Development Agency Managing 

Director Benjamin Mphahlele. 

Special features 

Regional overview of Limpopo 14 

Special economic zones are set to boost the 

manufacturing sector. 

Limpopo Development Plan 20 

Improving lives, and creating a conducive environment 

for investment. 

Special Economic Zones 22 

Investor-friendly measures are attracting investors to 

designated growth zones in Limpopo. 

Sector contents 

Agriculture40 

The strong agri-processing sector still has massive 

potential to grow in Limpopo. 

Mining44 

Special economic zones open up possibilities for 

investors in processing. 

LIMPOPO BUSINESS 2017/18 

4

UIF SAVING JOBS 

THROUGH SOCIALLY 

RESPONSIBLE INVESTMENTS 

The National Development Plan is a blueprint serving as 

a guideline to government departments and state entities 

on how they can play a role in government wide efforts 

of creating decent work, reducing unemployment and 

poverty. The Unemployment Insurance Fund is among 

the leading state entities in the implementation of the 

provisions of the NDP to address the slow economic 

growth, unemployment and poverty in South Africa. 

The UIF social investment mandate ensures that, 

additional to earning good financial returns, investments 

must be supportive of long term economic, social and 

adhere to sustainable environmental outcomes. The 

investments must also yield a good social return for the 

country. These investments have sustained 6 860 jobs of 

which 3 024 are permanent, 3 836 are temporary/seasonal 

and 195 are new jobs created during the financial year 

ending in March 2016. 

UIF INVESTMENTS IN RENEWABLE ENERGY 

The UIF investments are contributing to the energy 

requirements of South Africa and the investments in the 

renewable energy sector provides a total capacity of 192 

megawatt of electricity of which 117 megawatt is solar 

energy and 27 megawatt is wind generated electricity. 

The De Aar project is a shining example of the UIF energy 

investments and this project produces 90 megawatt of 

electricity and was completed in April 2016. The solar plant 

in the area generates enough electricity to power 15 000 

houses. Another mainstay project is the Phakwe Group ran 

projects undertaken in the Northern and Eastern Cape. 

INVESTMENT IN FOOD SECURITY 

The UIF investments in this regard are undertaken under 

the banner of the UIF Agri-Fund in partnership with 

Futuregrowth and Day Breaker Poultry Project. The UIF 

Agri-Fund has invested in 4 farms situated in Mable Hall 

in Limpopo. One of the farms is a cash crop farm spanning 

450 hectares. The farm in the last financial year produced 

235 hectares of white maize, and cotton was planted in an 

area covering 28 hectares. 

A further three farms are located in the Saron area in the 

Western Cape. In this project a total of 178 hectares has 

been used to plant grapes, 37 hectares has been used to 

pant citrus fruit. Furthermore, there is potential to plant an 

additional 92 hectares of grapes. The Daybreaker Poultry 

project operates in Gauteng, Limpopo and Mpumalanga 

and the combined projects have facilities to grow 1.6 

million broiler chickens. 

INVESTMENTS IN HEALTH CARE FACILITIES 

The UIF concluded two investments in this regard that 

include a BEE hospital manager, Busamed to build a 

private hospital in Modderfontein and Fund Manager 

Razorite Heatlhcare that focus on the provision of 

affordable heathcare facilities that include rehabilitation 

and sub-acute centres. 

The Modderfontein hospital is a 220 hospital bed with subacute 

facilities. This hospital is under construction. While 

the RH Fund Manager has concluded seven investments 

that include: 

• Busamed with four hospital facilities 

• HealthMed with two facilities 

INVESTMENTS IN EDUCATION 

UIF has invested in three investments that play a role 

to unlock access to education. The investments were 

concluded with Eduloan – an organisation that provides 

financial support to tertiary students and South Point and 

Educor organisations that provide student accommodation. 

By March 2016, Eduloan had disbursed about R446 986.64 

benefiting 34 047 students, whiles South Point provided 

about 10 000 student with accommodation. 

UIF INVESTMENTS IN ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT 

The UIF has concluded two investments with the aim of 

supporting small and medium enterprises. In this regard 

the PIC on behalf of UIF has concluded investment deals 

with Musa Capital and TOSACO. 

The investments will support more than 250 SMMEs across 

various sectors inclusive of agriculture and affordable 

housing. Musa Capital for example has a supply chain of 

over 250 SMME’s that have facilitated the creation of 2 500 

jobs. 

TOSACO investments is planning to advance capital to 

young black entrepreneurs who aspire to own and manage 

Total Filling stations around the country. 

For more information: 

Call: 0800 843 843 or 

visit: www.labour.gov.za

Metropolitan/District Municipality 

Boundary 

Local Municipality Boundary 

District Municipality 

Local Municipality 

Lephalale 

CREDITS 

Energy60 

An energy complex is planned for Lephalale. 

Water61 

Major bulk water projects are under way. 

Transport and logistics 62 

Limpopo’s location makes it ideal for logistics operations. 

Information and telecommunications technology 68 

Limpopo is getting better connected. 

Banking and financial services 76 

The provincial government is creating an 

insurance company. 

Development finance and SMME support 78 

A new strategy for the economies of townships and 

villages will boost SMMEs. 

Education and training 84 

Relevant training for employment is a provincial priority. 

Tourism86 

Cultural tourism is growing fast in Limpopo. 

Government 

Limpopo Provincial Government 91 

A guide to Limpopo’s provincial departments 

and their MECs. 

Limpopo Local Government 92 

A guide to district and local municipalities in 

Limpopo Province. 

References 

Sector contents 38 

Overview of the main economic sectors of Limpopo. 

Index96 

Map 

Limpopo locator map. 21 

Limpopo municipalities map. 93 

MUNICIPALITIES IN LIMPOPO PROVINCE 

BOTSWANA 

Lephalale 

Lephalale 

Thabazimbi Thabazimbi 

Waterberg 

Waterberg 

Bele-Bela 

N11 

Mogalakwena 

Mookgophong Lim 368 

Bela-Bela 

Mokopane 

N1 

Modimolle 

Alldays 

Blouberg 

N11 

Molemole 

Makhado 

Musina 

N1 

Makhado 

Tshipise 

R81 

Tzaneen 

Capricorn 


Polokwane 

POLOKWANE 

Ephraim 

Mogale 

Musina 

Lepele-Nkumpi 


Vhembe 



Tubatse 

Sekhukhune 

ZIMBABWE 

Thohoyandou 

Thulamela 

R81 

Greater 

Giyani 

Kruger National 

Kruger Park District 

National Management 

Area 

Park 

Mopani 

Phalaborwa 

Ba-Phalaborwa 

Bohlabela 

(Cross-border 

Municipality) 

R40 

Maruleng 

Bushbuckridge 

MOZAMBIQUE 


Park District 

Management 

Area 

North West 


Mpumalanga 


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FOREWORD 

Limpopo Business 

A unique guide to business and investment in Limpopo. 

Limpopo Business 2017/18 is the ninth edition of this highly successful 

publication that has, since its launch in 2007, established 

itself as the premier business and investment guide to the 

Limpopo Province. This edition of Limpopo Business is officially 

endorsed by the Office of the Premier of Limpopo. 

This book contains detailed insights into the plans of the Limpopo 

Economic Development Agency (LEDA) and the recently launched bus rapid 

transport system for the provincial capital, Leeto la Polokwane, together 

with a comprehensive register of all provincial government and municipal 

contact details. Investment news related to mining, telecommunications and 

tourism is carried in overviews of all the main economic sectors. 

To complement the extensive distribution of the print edition of the 

magazine, the publication is also available online at www.limpopobusiness. 

co.za. Updated information and news is dissemenated through our monthly 

e-newsletter, which you can subscribe to at www.gan.co.za, in addition to 

our complementary business-to-business titles that cover all nine provinces 

as well as our flagship South African Business title. 

Chris Whales 

Publisher, Global Africa Network Media 

Email: chris@gan.co.za 

ABOUT THE COVER 

De Beers is currently undertaking a major project to convert Venetia 

Mine from an open-pit operation to an underground mine. Open 

pit mining is expected to continue until 2021 and production in 

the underground mine is scheduled to commence in 2022 and will 

continue to 2043. 

CREDITS 

Publisher: Chris Whales 

Publishing director: 

Robert Arendse 

Editor: John Young 

Online editor: Christoff Scholtz 

Art director: Brent Meder 

Design: Colin Carter 

Production: Lizel Olivier 

Business development manager: 

Shiko Diala 

Ad sales: Sydwell Adonis, Nigel 

Williams, Gavin van der Merwe, 

Sam Oliver, Gabriel Venter, 

Siyawamkela Sthunda, 

Vanessa Wallace, Jeremy Petersen 

and Reginald Motsoahae 

Managing director: Clive During 

Administration & accounts: 

Charlene Steynberg and 

Natalie Koopman 

Distribution & circulation 

manager: Edward MacDonald 

Printing: FA Print 

DISTRIBUTION 

Limpopo Business is distributed internationally on outgoing 

and incoming trade missions; to foreign offices in South 

Africa’s main trading partners; at top national and international 

events; through the offices of foreign representatives in 

South Africa; as well as nationally and regionally via chambers 

of commerce, tourism offices, trade and investment agencies, 

provincial government departments, municipalities, airport 

lounges and companies. 

Member of the Audit Bureau of Circulations 

PUBLISHED BY 

Global Africa Network Media (Pty) Ltd 

Company Registration No: 2004/004982/07 

Directors: Clive During, Chris Whales 

Physical address: 28 Main Road, Rondebosch 7700 

Postal address: PO Box 292, Newlands 7701 

Tel: +27 21 657 6200 | Fax: +27 21 674 6943 

Email: info@gan.co.za | Website: www.gan.co.za 

ISSN 1993-0119 

COPYRIGHT | Limpopo Business is an independent publication published 

by Global Africa Network Media (Pty) Ltd. Full copyright to the 

publication vests with Global Africa Network Media (Pty) Ltd. No part 

of the publication may be reproduced in any form without the written 

permission of Global Africa Network Media (Pty) Ltd. 

PHOTO CREDITS | Pictures supplied by: Chris Kirchoff, Wikimedia, 

Flickr, Anglo American, ANB Investments, Du Roi Nursery, South African 

Tourism, MediaclubSA, Ridgeway College, Malan Koetze, Marthinus 

Duckitt, Brand South Africa and Skycraper City. 

DISCLAIMER | While the publisher, Global Africa Network Media (Pty) 

Ltd, has used all reasonable efforts to ensure that the information contained 

in Limpopo Business is accurate and up-to-date, the publishers 

make no representations as to the accuracy, quality, timeliness, or completeness 

of the information. Global Africa Network will not accept 

responsibility for any loss or damage suffered as a result of the use of or 

any reliance placed on such information. 


8

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MESSAGE 

Limpopo welcomes investors to the 

“gateway” province 

A message from the Premier of Limpopo, the Honourable Chupu Stanley Mathabatha. 

Chupu Stanley Mathabatha, 

Premier of Limpopo 

It gives me great pleasure to 

welcome the readers of Limpopo 

Business to the heartland of 

Southern Africa. Limpopo is also 

known as the “gateway” province 

because of our strategic location 

on the Great North Road to 

Zimbabwe, our links to the Port of 

Maputo in Mozambique via the 

Phalaborwa Spatial Development 

Initiative and the Maputo Corridor 

and our close proximity to the 

Republic of Botswana and three 

South African provinces, Gauteng, 

North West and Mpumalanga. 

Trade in the mining and agricultural products of Limpopo is 

supported by an excellent transport and logistics sector which recently 

received an additional boost with the approval by the South African 

national government of a new Special Economic Zone in the province. 

The Musina-Makhado Special Economic Zone will leverage the existing 

advantages in mining and logistics of the northern part of Limpopo 

and special tax and customs regimes will be attractive to investors. A 

mining-focussed SEZ at Tubatse is also under consideration and we 

expect to attract about R44-billion in investments into these two zones. 

The rich soils of Limpopo produce great quantities of high-quality 

minerals and fruit and vegetables. Investors with the ability to beneficiate 

minerals or add value to agricultural produce through processing 

can take advantage of the favourable terms offered by Special 

Economic Zone legislation. 

Power generation, steel and coking plants and plasma waste gasification 

are among the possibilities for the Musina SEZ, while the focus 

at Tubatse will be platinum group metals beneficiation and also the 

manufacturing of goods that are used in the mining industry. 

Working together with the private sector, our provincial government 

has identified 10 major projects with a combined value of R46-billion. 

This will go a long way towards helping us to expand the productive 

capacity of our economy. We invite other investors to explore with us 

the possibilities for further projects that will support our effort to put 

Limpopo on a higher trajectory of economic growth and development. 

Our Limpopo Development Plan symbolises our dedication to the 

improvement of our provincial economy. The plan is our contribution to 

the nation’s development and it details how we in Limpopo share the 

same vision and imperatives regarding poverty reduction, elimination 

of social inequality and the creation of sustainable jobs. 

We are pleased that Limpopo has recorded the second-highest 

employment gains in 2016. In the fourth quarter, Limpopo managed 

to create 64 000 new jobs. Jobs gained were mainly in the areas of 

construction, mining and agriculture. 

We are committed to improving infrastructure in the province, 

both to improve the quality of life of our citizens and as a way of 

enabling investment. 

Limpopo Connexion, a subsidiary of the Limpopo Economic 

Development Agency, has begun in earnest with the rollout of 


10

MESSAGE 

infrastructure for the broadband telecommunication 

programme in Limpopo. 

The programme implementation is in two phases, 

with the first phase commencing in quarter two of 

the 2017/18 financial year. This phase rolls out the 

broadband infrastructure in Polokwane, including 

the identified key provincial growth points. The second 

phase of the programme will cover over 80% 

of the provincial population, as per the provincial 

spatial development framework. 

A Provincial Infrastructure Hub has recently been 

created, with 68 professionals already appointed. 

This body will help to coordinate the delivery of 

strategic social-economic infrastructure across the 

province. 

Heritage and culture are increasingly being recognised 

as potential economic drivers. A provincial 

performance theatre is to be built in Polokwane at 

the corner of Oost and Grobler streets. This project 

will among other things help ignite the cultural 

industry, promote our rich and diverse cultures and 

create job opportunities. 

Two Limpopo festivals are already proving the 

rich potential of cultural events. The Mapungubwe 

Festival a signature event in the country’s entertainment 

calendar. During the last Mapungubwe 

Festival, a number of crafters generated substantial 

income. 

Another striking event on the province’s social 

calendar is the annual Marula Festival. The festival 

regularly attracts about 30 000 people including 

hundreds of visitors from neighbouring countries 

such as Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Zambia. 

This year’s guest list includes people from as far 

as South America. The economic spinoffs of this 

festival are unrivalled. More than 13 cooperatives 

under Mukumbi Industries brews 12 000 litres of 

marula beverages for the public throughout the 

festival. Apart from marula beverages, local entrepreneurs 

also sell other by-products of marula, 

such as jam, cooking oil, soap, hand and body 

lotions and nuts. 

Tourism remains one of the key competitive 

advantages for Limpopo. The Kruger National Park 

is South Africa’s number-one tourist attraction. A 

number of private concessions have been granted 

along the public park’s edge and there are several 

private game reserves scattered throughout 

the province’s diverse landscapes. Golf tourism 

is another growth sector with proximity to the 

country’s major point of entry at Johannesburg’s 

OR Tambo International Airport a big selling point. 

Whether you are a tourist, a business person or 

an investor, Limpopo is a province that is rich in opportunities. 

We look forward to welcoming you. 

www.limpopo.gov.za 

11 

LIMPOPO BUSINESS 2017/18

MESSAGE 

A springboard for regional 

integration and commerce 

Mr Benjamin Mphahlele, Managing Director of the 

Limpopo Economic Development Agency. 

the continent’s largest economies, and bordering as it does Botswana, 

Zimbabwe and Mozambique, Limpopo Province enjoys a perfectly 

natural geographical advantage to enhance regional integration towards 

the manifestation of African Agenda 2063, with the ideal of “an 

integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa, driven by its own citizens 

and representing a dynamic force in the global arena.” 

Benjamin Mphahlele 

The African continent and African 

economies present massive investment 

opportunities in terms 

of large infrastructure projects, 

innovative and renewable energy 

sources, as well as large markets 

that encompass retail, commodities, 

ICT, manufacturing, arts and 

culture, travel and tourism, transportation 

and logistics, and other 

sectors. As a province in one of 

LIMPOPO PROVINCE HAS A PERFECTLY 

NATURAL GEOGRAPHICAL ADVANTAGE 

TO ENHANCE REGIONAL INTEGRATION 

TOWARDS THE MANIFESTATION OF 

AFRICAN AGENDA 2063 WITH THE IDEAL 

OF “AN INTEGRATED, PROSPEROUS 

AND PEACEFUL AFRICA, DRIVEN BY ITS 

OWN CITIZENS AND REPRESENTING A 

DYNAMIC FORCE IN THE GLOBAL ARENA.” 

As a lead economic development agency for Limpopo, the Limpopo 

Economic Development Agency (LEDA) is best positioned to articulate 

and drive the following: 

• Working with its shareholder, the Limpopo Provincial Government, 

to implement provincial economic strategy in the context of the 

National Development Plan and the cluster-based Limpopo 

Development Plan 

• Establishing the industrial cluster fora necessary to create and 

accumulate the required social capital, thus creating a common 


12

MESSAGE 

THE SPECIAL ECONOMIC 

ZONES, MUSINA-MAKHADO 

AND TUBATSE, ARE INTEGRAL 

TO REALISING THE ECONOMIC 

GROWTH OF THE PROVINCE 

vision for each respective industrial cluster within 

an identified geographical space and develop 

cluster action plans 

• Coordinating key stakeholders within each cluster 

or project and facilitating the pace of implementation 

through an agreed-upon programme 

of action 

• Creating investment opportunities in the factorendowed 

yet rural province and providing infrastructure 

requisite for the industrialisation of the 

province. Such infrastructure includes the building 

and revitalisation of industrial parks, and the 

building of the ICT, green economy and energy 

sectors to enhance sustainable global competitiveness. 

The Special Economic Zones, Musina- 

Makhado and Tubatse, are integral to realising the 

economic growth of the province. Limpopo is 

rich in mineral resources, and 17 new mines were 

established in the greater Tubatse/ Burgersfort/ 

Steelport area between 2001 and 2016, with a 

further 22 new mines planned. Beneficiation of 

platinum group metals (PGM), magnetite, vanadium 

and chrome provides opportunities that 

include catalytic converters, platinum jewellery, 

hydrogen fuel cells and solar energy component 

manufacturing. The Zones provide to investors 

a package of tax-based incentives and provision 

of infrastructure necessary to build globally 

competitive firms 

• Building the Sub-Tropical Fruit Industrial Cluster 

by expanding primary production capacity, thus 

creating demand and growth of the upstream 

agricultural inputs production as well expanding 

the provincial presence in the fruit export markets 

and the downstream food processing businesses 

• Securing Foreign Direct Investment through international 

finance and partnerships, while scanning 

the global markets for critical skills requisite 

for developing the Limpopo economy 

• Developing Tourism Destination Assets: the 

Limpopo Tourism Agency markets the province 

from a tourism perspective, where key heritage 

attractions include Mapungubwe and its 

artefacts, Makapan’s Cave (a sister project to 

the Cradle of Humankind) and the hot springs 

at Bela-Bela. But it remains LEDA's mandate to 

match the province's natural and professional 

services assets/industries to global business value 

chains, cross-industry corporate transactions, 

as well the hosting and capacitation of diplomatic 

missions at home and abroad. Integral to this 

objective is the provision of up-to-date market 

intelligence about the province's economy and 

providing marketing and public relations tools 

to sell Limpopo as an attractive and competitive 

investment destination. 

KEY STRATEGIC INTERVENTIONS 

• Facilitate business-to-business linkages 

• Delivery of large-scale catalytic projects 

• Create investment opportunities in 

rural Limpopo 

• Drive investor education and secure 

Foreign Direct Investment 

• Stimulate large-scale farming and 

agro-processing 

• Encourage creation of urban city regions 

• Drive destination marketing 

CONTACT INFO 

Head office: Enterprise Development 

Finance House, Main Road, Lebowakgomo, 

Polokwane 0699 

Tel: +27 15 633 4700 | Fax: +27 15 633 4854 

Website: www.lieda.co.za 

13 LIMPOPO BUSINESS 2017/18

MESSAGE 

Efficient, reliable, secure public 

transport 

A message from the Executive Mayor of Polokwane Local Municipality, 

Councillor Thembisile Nkadimeng. 

Thembisile Nkadimeng, 

Executive Mayor 

The Municipality of Polokwane 

welcomes the introduction of 

Leeto la Polokwane which is set 

to provide our residents with 

much improved public transport 

and stimulate the local economy. 

Leeto la Polokwane, which means “Our journey”, will provide 

an efficient, reliable, secure, cost-effective public transport service 

that reduces congestion on public roads, protects the environment 

and connects people to daily life. It will also spur economic growth 

through sustainable job creation and the facilitation of seamless 

trade and business. 

Investment in transport infrastructure leads to job creation and 

skills transfer while reducing travel times for people to acquire 

goods and services. Moreover, the project also provides valuable 

public health benefits by reducing road fatalities, crashes and injuries; 

reducing personal exposure to harmful air pollutants and increasing 

physical activity for users. Such improvements will have a positive 

impact in promoting local businesses and stimulating investments 

within Polokwane. 

The service is initially slated to run from the Central Business District, 

past Seshego and into Moletjie. Already, 2.5km of Dedicated Lanes 

towards Seshego township have been completed, with a further 1.5km 

under construction. This will culminate in 50km of road construction 

for trunk and feeder routes. 

Moreover, there have also been trunk extension rehabilitation 

and upgrades – 13.8km completed with 32.6km in the CBD. To date, 

12.8km of roads falling under the national Department of Transport 

have been completed, with 24.8km from partnerships with other 

grant providers. They cater for pedestrians and cyclists though the 

provision of sidewalks, cross walks, paths and cycle lanes. 

Special needs facilities including tactile paving for the blind, boarding 

bridges to ensure level boarding between the stops, stations and 

buses and easy-to-use pedestrian and passenger information signage 

have been put in place. 

The target for having the first buses rolling is 2018. We are reaching 

out to the community to make them aware of Leeto la Polokwane. 

We are engaging in a number of stakeholder engagement sessions, 

community outreach events, media events and door-to-door 

interactions to share progress with the communities we serve 

and to receive feedback. We are also active on the various social 

media platforms. 


14

City of Polokwane set to grow 

Message from the Municipal Manager of Polokwane Municipality, Dikgape Makobe. 

MESSAGE 

Polokwane is an obvious destination for logistics operations. With 

a well-established rail network and Polokwane International Airport, 

there are good connections to neighbouring provinces and countries 

such as North West, Mpumalanga and the Republic of Botswana. The 

large national logistics company, Value Group, only has four big depots 

in South Africa: one of them is in Polokwane. 

Polokwane is the biggest manufacturing centre in the province, 

with several agri-processing firms. Enterprise Foods has a large canning 

and emulsion processing plant in the city, Sasko runs a mill and other 

big manufacturers include SAB, Tiger Brands and Unilever. Charcoal is 

also manufactured in the city. 

Polokwane has a well-established financial sector that can assist 

with the financing of new infrastructure. 

Dikgape Makobe 

The Municipality of Polokwane 

is ready to achieve its objectives 

for development 

and service delivery and 

welcomes investors who want 

to take advantage of the many 

opportunities that we offer. 

The City of Polokwane is one of 

the fastest-growing urban areas 

in the north and it is the centre for 

regional economic development 

in the area. The city has many economic 

and business opportunities 

for the astute investor. 

Strategically located on the 

Great North Road linking South 

Africa’s economic heartland 

of Gauteng with Zimbabwe, 

Preparing the way 

Council has successfully put in place measures to tackle ageing 

infrastructure, water and sanitation backlog, rural electrification and to 

develop a solid maintenance programme for its infrastructure. Progress 

is under way to improve the total road network in the city. 

The city is hard at work to ensure that smart connectivity in the 

city is created to have access to broadband and WiFi. The municipality 

will continuously implement the Smart City Concept in other service 

delivery fields to create an encouraging environment for investment 

growth. We have achieved consensus with the business community 

to find ways to unlock job opportunities and we aim to find smart 

ways to unlock economic growth using the land that the city owns. 

There is a great potential for investment in central city property 

management and the entertainment sector. The arts theatre project 

also brings with it massive investment opportunities in the entertainment 

sector. The city centre is ripe for revitalisation and remodelling. 

A list of investment opportunities in Polokwane appears in the Local 

Government section. Polokwane is also looking for private partners to 

assist in rolling out these important catalytic projects: 

• Smart Metering Solutions 

• 90MW Solar Plant 

• Waste Water Treatment Plant (Dalmada and Polokwane) 

• Replacement of Asbestos Pipes 

• Construction of Polokwane International Convention Centre 

• Student Accommodation 

• Broadband Fibre Network 

• Science and Technology Park 


A REGIONAL OVERVIEW OF 

LIMPOPO 

The Limpopo Development Plan outlines concrete steps to industrialisation, infrastructure 

development, promotion of SMMEs and expanding the knowledge economy. 

By John Young 

Limpopo’s location gives it a strategic importance 

that enhances the province’s strengths 

in mining and agriculture. Neighbouring 

countries Botswana, Zimbabwe and 

Mozambique all provide economic opportunities 

and the province’s proximity to the powerhouse 

of Gauteng ensures a ready market for goods 

and services. 

Existing manufacturing in the province is centred 

on mining areas (smelters and refineries), 

agricultural estates (juices and concentrates) and 

Polokwane (food and beverages). Agri-processing 

is strong, with Pioneer Foods, McCain, Granor 

Passi, Kanhym, Westfalia and Enterprise Foods 

prominent, but this sector still has potential 

to grow.

SPECIAL FEATURE 

The Great North Road 

passes through Limpopo 

from the south to the border 

town of Musina and on 

to Zimbabwe and its neighbours 

in the Southern African 

Development Community. 

The busy N11 highway links 

the province to Botswana to 

the west and Mpumalanga 

Province to the east. 

Most of South Africa's logistics 

operators have a presence 

in the provincial capital 

city of Polokwane and freight 

logistics hubs have been 

established at that city and 

at Musina. 

Limpopo covers about 10% of South Africa's 

land mass and is home to about 10% of the country's 

population (5.4-million). The main languages 

of the people of Limpopo are Sesotho, Xitsonga 

and Tshivenda but English is widely used in 

business and government. 

Transport within the city of Polokwane is being 

transformed by the introduction of a bus 

rapid transport system, Leeto la Polokwane. In 

the province as a whole, 22.6% of households in 

Limpopo use bus transport and 45.8% use taxis. 

Great North Transport falls under the 

Limpopo Economic Development Agency. 

The company has more than 500 buses, 

covers about 36-million kilometres every 

year on 279 routes, employs more than 

1 200 people and transports 37.6-million 

passengers. 

The Polokwane International Airport (PIA) is 

wholly owned by the provincial government 

and run by the Gateway Airport Authority 

Ltd (GAAL), an agency of the Department of 

Roads and Transport. It has the potential to 

be an important regional cargo airport. SA 

Airlink offers 21 flights to Johannesburg six 

days a week. The airline also provides links 

between Phalaborwa and Johannesburg, 

and between Hoedspruit and Johannesburg 

and Cape Town. 

The province also has a sophisticated rail network 

which Transnet Freight Rail aims to further 

expand, primarily to haul the province’s vast reserves 

of coal away to the coast at Richards Bay. 

Special Economic Zones 

One of the ways in which Limpopo is leveraging its 

strategic location is through the establishment of the 

Musina-Makhado Special Economic Zone. Recently 

promulgated by national government, the SEZ will 

have among its core functions the clustering of logistics 

operations. Located in the Vhembe District in 

the far north, this SEZ is near the border of Zimbabwe 

and on the Great North Road, thus linking with the 

broader Trans-Limpopo Spatial Development Initiative. 

Other focus sectors are agri-processing, energy 

and mineral beneficiation. Exxaro and De Beers have 

large mining operations nearby. A consortium of 

Chinese investors, Sino, has agreed to put R40-billion 

into the Musina-Makhado SEZ to run the mineral 

beneficiation operations. 

A second application for an SEZ has been made 

within the province’s platinum belt in the east of 

the province. The Tubatse SEZ, in the Sekhukhune 

District Municipality, will focus on the beneficiation 

of platinum group metals (PGMs) and mining-related 

manufacturing. 


18


The following areas have been identified as 

priority zones for the province’s industrialisation 

strategy: Polokwane, Lephalale, Tubatse, Tzaneen 

and the Makhado-Musina corridor. 

Economic strengths 

When it comes to exports Limpopo punches above 

its weight because of the abundance of mineral 

wealth under the ground, and the superb fruit and 

vegetables that the province's farmers cultivate. 

Potatoes are grown, together with 75% of South 

Africa’s mangoes and tomatoes; papayas (65%); tea 

(36%); citrus, bananas and litchis (25%) and 60% of 

the country's avocadoes. 

The best performing subsector of South African 

exports over the last five years is fruit and nuts (www. 

worldstopexports.com). Limpopo has been a major 

contributor to the country’s excellent export record: 

avocadoes, mangoes and macadamia nuts from 

the province's eastern regions are hugely popular 

in international markets and Limpopo's commercial 

farmers are extremely efficient. 

The province has huge reserves of coal, platinum, 

chromium, uranium clay, nickel, cobalt, vanadium, 

limestone and tin. Demand will always fluctuate, 

and the commodities cycle has recently been very 

volatile, but the world will always need minerals. 

Limpopo assets include the largest diamond 

mine in South Africa, the biggest copper mine in 

South Africa, the biggest open-pit platinum mine 

in the country and the biggest vermiculite mine in 

the world. The province has 41% of South Africa’s 

platinum group metals (PGMs), 90% of South Africa’s 

red-granite resources and approximately 50% of the 

country’s coal reserves. Antimony, a highly strategic 

mineral found in large quantities in China, is another 

of Limpopo’s major assets. 

Two of the largest engineering projects in the 

history of South Africa have recently been undertaken 

in Limpopo. Both the Medupi power station 

(at Lephalale in the far west) and the De Hoop Dam 

(in the south-east) have the potential to give the 

region's economy a massive boost. 

The combined land area of Limpopo's 

wnational, provincial and private game and nature 

reserves is 3.6-million hectares. According to the 

Premier’s office, the tourism sector employs about 

22 400 people. 

The Kruger National Park is one of the world’s 

most famous conservation areas, and a major attraction 

for the region. Limpopo has two World 

Heritage Sites: the Mapungubwe National Park (the 



site of a 12th-century iron-age civilisation) and the 

Makapans Valley (Ndebele history and palaeontological 

exhibits). 

Industrialisation 

The official approval of Special Economic Zone 

status for Musina-Makhado in 2016 was closely followed 

by the decision of the Limpopo Provincial 

Government to apply for SEZ status for Tubatse. 

This marks a determined shift in economic policy 

towards promoting industrialisation and manufacturing 

through beneficiation. 

Heavy industries that have been identified as possible 

tenants for the Musina-Makhado SEZ include 

several that are dependent on the mining industry 

to supply feedstock – possible processing facilities 

that have been suggested to investors include plants 

for coking, ferrochrome and ferrosilicon production, 

pig-iron metallurgy, steel, stainless steel and lime. 

A proposed petrochemical zone in the SEZ might 

include a coal-to-liquids plant and a synthetic bitumen 

plant. 

A Chinese company has signed an agreement 

to manage the Energy and Metallurgical Cluster 

within the Musina-Makhado SEZ. Shenzhen Holmor 

Resources Holdings will invest about R40-billion to 

create the infrastructure for a range of private investors 

to come in and produce steel, ferrochrome, pig 

iron and the like. 

The Tubatse Platinum SEZ is even more closely 

related to the mining industry, as its name implies. 

According to the Limpopo Economic Development 

Agency (LEDA), 17 new mines were established in 

the greater Tubatse/Burgersfort/Steelport area between 

2001 and 2016, and a further 22 new mines 

are planned. The completion of the large new De 

Hoop Dam makes these plans possible. 

The focus at Tubatse will be on the beneficiation 

of platinum group metals (PGM), magnetite, 

vanadium and chrome. Some of the products suggested 

are: catalytic converters, platinum jewellery, 

hydrogen fuel cells and solar energy component 

manufacturing (wind turbines and PV modules). 

A Mining Supply Park is envisaged which will be a 

big boost for local businesses and suppliers. Getting 

local small, medium and micro-enterprises (SMMEs) 

engaged with and supplying to the mining sector 

is a goal of the provincial authorities. A Limpopo 

Mining Forum has been proposed and the provincial 

government would like to see 30% of every 

contract issued on capital, consumables and services 

stay in the province, subject to their being a supplier 

who is able to fulfil the contract. 

Regions 

Limpopo’s dry, cattle-rearing, western areas contrast 

with the subtropical regions of the east where 

forestry thrives and the central regions where vast 

plantations produce 60% of the country’s tomatoes. 

The area north of the Soutpansberg Mountains is 

semi-arid. The Waterberg mountains stretch over 

5 000km² through the northern reaches of 

the province. 

Limpopo has five district municipalities: 

Capricorn District 

Capricorn is the economic centre of Limpopo, with 

the provincial capital Polokwane contributing 13% of 

the provincial GDP. The cultivation of citrus, potatoes 

and tomatoes is done on a large scale in the district. 

Polokwane is the province's main centre for industry, 

commerce, education and medical services. 

The city is close to big concentrations of mineral deposits 

and to fertile agricultural lands; its industries 

reflect this diversity. Large industrial concerns such 

as Silicon Smelters (one of the biggest of its kind in 

the world) and a big brewery run alongside at least 

600 industrial enterprises of a smaller scale. 

Polokwane has good hotel and conferencing facilities. 

Park Inn by Radisson Polokwane is the newest 

hotel to open in the city. Nearby Moria attracts up to 

a million people every year, when the Zion Christian 

Church celebrates Easter. 

Greater Sekhukhune District 

Government is the largest employer in this southern 

district, followed by agriculture and hunting. 

The vast majority of households are rural (94%) 

and Groblersdal is the district capital. The region’s 

fertile lands produce maize, tobacco, peanuts, 


20


ZIMBABWE 

NAMIBIA 

BOTSWANA 

North West 

Limpopo 

LIMPOPO 

Mpumalanga 

Gauteng 

SWAZI- 

LAND 

MOZAMBIQUE 

Northern Cape 

Free State 

LESOTHO 

KwaZulu- 

Natal 

Western Cape 

Eastern Cape 

vegetables, sunflower seeds and cotton on a large 

scale. Agriculture makes up 25% of the economy. 

Burgersfort is an important town because of 

platinum mining. 

Mopani District 

Giyani is the administrative capital of the district 

and is key to the local economy. The public sector is 

one of the largest employers and the key sectors are 

agriculture and mining. Mopani has an established 

food manufacturing industry, in canned, preserved 

and dried-fruit production and vegetable juices. 

Phalaborwa is the gateway to the Kruger National 

Park. It has a good airport and is a tourism hub. 

Palaborwa Mining Company (Palamin) is the major 

economic driving force in the area. State-owned 

phosphate and phosphoric acid producer Foskor 

is another major employer. Sasol Nitro Phalaborwa 

produces phosphoric acid and deflourinated acid. 

The Marula Festival is held in Phalaborwa every year. 

A subtropical climate and fertile soils combine 

to make greater Tzaneen very productive in terms 

of fruit and vegetables. Limpopo’s second most 

populous city has a population of 80 000. The Letaba 

Valley produces a large proportion of South Africa’s 

mangoes, avocadoes and tomatoes. Forty sawmills 

operate in the area, drawing on the heavily forested 

hills around the city. 

Vhembe District 

The Vhembe District borders Zimbabwe and 

Botswana. The district’s administrative capital is 

Thohoyandou. Vhembe’s vast bushveld supports 

commercial and game farming and the district has 

considerable cultural and historical assets. Game 

farming is a growing subsector, as is eco-tourism. De 

Beers’ Venetia Mine, situated just west of Musina, is 

South Africa’s largest diamond producer. 

Thohoyandou is the administrative centre of 

Thulamela Local Municipality, Vhembe District 

Municipality and the University of Venda. The Ivory 

Route passes through the district. Other attractions 

include an ancient baobab tree, the Dzata Ruins, the 

Museum of the Drum, the mystical Lake Fundudzi 

and Nwanedi Provincial Park. 

Waterberg District 

The mining sector is the largest contributor to 

regional GDP, while agriculture is also significant. 

Several towns in the district are located in the 

mineral-rich Bushveld Igneous Complex. 

The district also features the riches of the 

Waterberg Coal Fields, iron ore (at Thabazimbi) and 

tin and platinum at Mookgophong. The town of 

Lephalale is at the heart of the region’s coal-mining 

and power-generation sectors. 

The area around Mokopane is one of the richest 

agricultural zones in South Africa, producing wheat, 

tobacco, cotton, beef, maize and peanuts. The bubbling 

hot springs of Bela-Bela mark it as a popular 

tourism destination, and the district has many luxury 

golf estates. 



Limpopo Development Plan 

Improving lives, and creating a conducive environment for investment. 

Improving the lives of the citizens of Limpopo is 

the overarching aim of the Limpopo Development 

Plan. The economic levers that can bring 

that improvement about present investment opportunities, 

particularly in the sectors that have been 

identified as key drivers of growth: mining, tourism 

and agriculture. 

The Limpopo Development Plan (LDP) is targeting 

three broad areas for improvement and development: 

socio-economic, infrastructural and institutional. 

Every department of the Limpopo Provincial 

Government has targets within the LDP which 

are translated into actionable programmes to be 

implemented within time-frames. 

Development is defined as broad-based improvements 

in the standard and quality of life for 

the people living throughout the province, to which 

all institutions (including government, business, 

labour and citizens) contribute. Increased job creation, 

higher incomes, better access to good public 

services and sound environmental management are 

the measures of the development plan. 

The plan, currently in its implementation 

phase, is further supported by a spatial investment 

framework in public and private sector 

infrastructure, an integrated public transport policy 

and land policies. 

This article focusses on the economic aspects 

and the potential of the LDP for private investors 

to participate. 

Key elements of the Limpopo Development Plan 

are: industrialisation (beneficiation of mining and 

agricultural products and produce); mining (local 

suppliers, improved training and access to sector 

for entrepreneurs); infrastructure development; 

agri-processing; SMME promotion; and ICT and the 

knowledge economy (establish a WAN footprint). 

Mining is currently the most important part of 

the provincial economy, contributing nearly 30% to 

GDPR. Many platinum mining developments on the 

eastern limb of the Bushveld Complex have spurred 

growth in that region. One of the goals of the LDP 

is to see more beneficiation from the mining sector, 

which will support the goal of further industrialising 

the province’s economy. Related to this is an 

emphasis on the manufacturing sector. 

In response, the two Special Economic Zones 

(SEZs) at Musina and Tubatse promote manufacturing. 

Specific manufacturing value-chains are identified 

for each area, based on the base mineral being 


22


mined. The LDP notes that it 

is also important for planners 

to “promote diversification and 

multi-skilling of the workforce, 

in order to mitigate the risks of 

shocks associated with commodity 

price dips and mine 

closures”. 

The following areas have 

been identified as priority 

zones for the industrialisation 

strategy: Polokwane, Lephalale, 

Tubatse, Tzaneen and the 

Makhado-Musina corridor. 

Strategic infrastructure 

In as much as the Limpopo 

Development Plan is aligned 

with the broader National 

Development Plan, there are 

several national Strategic Infrastructure Projects 

(SIPs) which affect Limpopo. 

Three in particular will make a big impact, namely 

SIP 1 (Unlocking the Northern Mineral Belt with 

Waterberg as the Catalyst), SIP 6 (Integrated Municipal 

Infrastructure Project) and SIP 7 (Integrated Urban Space 

and Public Transport Programme). The last two influence 

developments in the provincial municipalities of 

Lephalale, Mopani, Sekhukhune, Capricorn, Vhembe 

and Polokwane. 

Other national SIPs of relevance relate to green 

energy, agri-logistics and rural infrastructure, 

regional integration and water and sanitation 

infrastructure. 

Within Limpopo, the Premier’s Infrastructure 

Coordinating Committee (PICC) is a vital component 

in the rollout of new infrastructure. There are 

several locally driven projects boosting the provincial 

economy and are being promoted within 

the context of this Limpopo Development Plan: 

construction of Nwamitwa Dam; raising of Tzaneen 

Dam wall; integrated Mooihoek Water Scheme; reticulation 

from De Hoop and Nandoni Dams; purified 

water supply to Bela-Bela, Modimolle and 

Mookgopong local municipalities; rural access roads 

in support of agriculture and tourism clusters; solar 

photovoltaic electricity generation; information 

and communication technology; infrastructure at 

Polokwane International Airport; nodal infrastructure 

for the priority growth points; and adequate maintenance 

for all existing infrastructure. 

Each of these infrastructure improvements will 

make life better for local residents, and they will also 

create a more conducive environment for investors. 

The Limpopo Department of Economic 

Development, Environment and Tourism (LEDET) 

is coordinating the province’s strategy to attract investors. 

Key to the plan is public investment into 

priority growth points in selected economic sectors. 

These cluster priorities underpin the economic part 

of the plan: 

• Coal: Petrochemical and Energy Cluster in Lephalale 

(Green City urban development, Growth Point) 

• Platinum Cluster in Mokopane and Tubatse (Mining 

Supplier Park) 

• Musina-Makhado Corridor Mining Cluster 

• Phalaborwa Mining Cluster (Copper, Phosphate 

and Magnetite) 

• Polokwane and Musina Logistical Hubs 

• Various Agricultural Clusters, based on Agri-parks 

• Various Tourism Clusters, in every district. 

Existing tourism assets include two UNESCO World 

Heritage Sites (Mapungubwe National Park and the 

Makapan Valley) and the iconic Kruger National Park. 

There is enormous potential for growth in cultural 

tourism where small villages could offer experiences 

based on traditional practices, unique arts and crafts 

and local cuisine. 

Cluster Value-Chain Development Strategies, 

including beneficiation opportunities, have been 

developed for each of these clusters by the LEDET. 

International relations is the responsibility of 

national government, but the LDP has flagged a 

number of potential areas for regional integration 

that would be mutually beneficial: relationships with 

Botswana and Zimbabwe relating to the Coal and 

Energy Cluster in Lephalale and the Mining Cluster 

in the Musina-Makhado Corridor; an agreement 

with Zimbabwe to improve the efficiency of the Beit 

Bridge Border Post, as part of the Logistics Cluster; 

and an agreement with Mozambique relating to 

tourism and nature conservation. 


Special Economic Zones 

Investor-friendly measures are attracting investors to designated growth 

zones in Limpopo. 

Special Economic Zones are created in 

terms of the Special Economic Zones Act 

of 2014 (Act 16 of 2014). The act defines an 

SEZ as “geographically designated areas of 

the country that are set aside for specifically targeted 

economic activities, and supported through special 

arrangements and systems that are often different 

from those that apply to the rest of the country”. 

Lower corporate tax rates and duty-free imports 

are among the advantages that accrue to investors. 

Infrastructure at a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) 

supports the specific industry and attracts foreign 

investors with a strong focus on beneficiation of 

local produce or materials. SEZs are designed to 

attract investment, create jobs and boost exports. 

Skills transfer is another stated aim behind the 

SEZ programme. 

The National Department of Trade and Industry 

(dti) is the lead agent in the creation of Special 

Economic Zones, which are part of the national 

Industrial Policy Action Plan (IPAP). 

Several incentives are available to investors in 

SEZs. These include tax breaks from the South 

African Revenue Service (SARS), subsidised interest 

rates from the Industrial Development 

Corporation (IDC), subsidies for employees 

earning below a certain level and subsidies for 

the training of the workforce, incentives and 

grants from the dti, and incentives from national 

electricity utility Eskom. 

Other benefits might include a building allowance, 

employment incentives and the fact that an 

SEZ is a customs-controlled area. Within the dti’s 

Manufacturing Competitiveness Enhancement 

Programme, there is a Green Energy Efficiency 

Fund, all of which are designed to make investment 

in the zones more attractive, and to bolster 

the country’s manufacturing sector. 


24


company’s most recent life-of-mine expansion project 

will result in the mine producing until the 2040s. 

Soon after the announcement of the designation 

of the SEZ, the dti said that a consortium of Chinese 

investors, Sino, has agreed to put R40-billion into the 

Musina-Makhado SEZ where they will operate the 

mineral beneficiation operations. 

The first phase of this is to build a power plant. 

The dti estimates that the completed SEZ could 

create more than 20 000 jobs. 

Provision in being made in the planning phase 

for light, medium and heavy industry at the SEZ. 

A petrochemical zone is envisaged which could 

contain any or all of the following facililties: 

• coal-to-liquids plant 

• coking coal plant and power generation 

• methanol plant 

• synthetic bitumen plant 

• plasma waste gasification plant 

• water treatment plant. 

Tubatse SEZ 

Musina-Makhado SEZ 

In July 2016 the national cabinet approved the 

Musina-Makhado Special Economic Zone (SEZ). 

Located in the far north of Limpopo in the Vhembe 

region, Musina-Makhado is strategically located 

near the border of Zimbabwe and on the Great 

North Road which links South Africa to the broader 

Southern African region. 

The location of the Musina-Makhado SEZ, with 

links to Zimbabwe, Botswana and Mozambique, 

promotes the Trans-Limpopo Spatial Development 

Initiative. Logistics will be one of the key focus areas 

of the SEZ. 

Other sectors to be concentrated on include 

agri-processing (Foskor has a plant in nearby 

Phalaborwa), energy and mineral beneficiation. 

Exxaro has coal- mining operations in the north and 

De Beers’ giant Venetia diamond mine is nearby. The 

A second application for an SEZ at Tubatse is pending. 

Tubatse is in the Sekhukhune District Municipality 

and hosts a number of mining operations. 

The SEZ in Tubatse will focus on the beneficiation 

of platinum group metals (PGM) and mining-related 

manufacturing. The province of Bashkortostan in 

Russia has also expressed an interest in the SEZs 

of Limpopo. 

Phase one of the SEZ project would see a 280ha 

site developed to accommodate: 

• a mining suppliers park 

• light manufacturing 

• heavy manufacturing 

• logistics 

• a solar energy cluster 

• a PGM beneficiation cluster. 

Among the products that might be produced at 

the SEZ are catalytic converters, hydrogen fuel cells, 

chemotherapeutic agents, wind turbine blades, 

platinum jewellery and photo-voltaic solar modules. 

Metal processing that holds potential includes the 

conversion of magnetite to pig iron and steel, magnetite 

to vanadium pentoxide and waste to titanium. 


FOCUS 

LEDA: Enterprise 

Development and 

Finance Division 

Enabling business to grow while reducing risk. 

The Enterprise Development and Finance Division (EDFD) within 

the Limpopo Economic Development Agency (LEDA) provides 

financial products in support of businesses which are starting out 

or which need funds to tackle a project. 

Funding is available in a wide range of sectors, including manufacturing, 

agri-business (agri-processing), construction, mining and mining 

beneficiation, tourism, business support services, retail, professional 

services, transport services and ICT. 

Projects in the following sectors do not qualify for LEDA products: 

primary agriculture; infrastructure development; residential and commercial 

property; explorations; product development and licensing; 

non-profit organisations(NPOs) and Trusts. 

Among the most important criteria which the Enterprise Development 

and Finance Division uses to assess the desirability of a business or project 

are the possible developmental impact in terms of new jobs being 

created or a facility being built, proof that there is a viable market for the 

product or service about to be offered and profitability. 

Core funding products 

• Asset / equipment finance 

• Procurement / bridging finance 

• Working capital finance 

• Start-up finance 

• Franchise finance 

Although LEDA is active in each of these product divisions, the most 

popular in recent years has been procurement/bridging finance option. 

This financial product requires no collateral and is linked to the business 

owner having a government contract. This reduces risk for all parties. 

“There are three parties involved,” says Loan Proposals and Origination 

Manager Chavani Khosa. “There is the employer government department 

that issues the contract for work, the client (or business undertaking 

the work) and LEDA. All three parties sign the agreement which states 

that the whole amount must be paid to LEDA when the client has 

completed the job.” 

TEN IMPORTANT 

STEPS TO SECURE 

LEDA FUNDING: 

1. Safety of the facility 

2. Background of the client 

3. Financial position of the 

client 

4. Needs of the client 

5. Security / collateral 

6. Desirability and 

developmental impact 

7. Demonstrate the market 

8. Profitability 

9. Cash flow available for 

debt service 

10. Source of loan 

repayment 

The client needs to show LEDA 

that he or she has a purchase order 

from a government department. 

That will unlock funding to allow 

work to begin on the project and 

the client will then submit regular 

progress reports to LEDA. Once the 

job is done and the full payment 

paid to LEDA, the loan amount and 

interest is subtracted by LEDA and 

the balance paid out to the client 

or contractor. 

In the case of an application 

being received for a working 


26

FOCUS 

capital finance product, the client 

must prove that they have a 

market for the product or service. 

In addition, says Khosa, “LEDA 

will go and verify that this is a legitimate 

business with an on-site 

inspection.” Then money can be 

released to buy stock or building 

materials. 

LEDA has Business Origination 

Officers who take clients through 

the qualification criteria required 

when an application is made. Any 

one of these types of business 

ownership models can apply: 

sole trader; close corporation; 

private company; co-operative. 

Partnerships, policies 

and profit 

LEDA has entered into several 

partnerships as it extends and 

diversifies its funding portfolio. 

These include large companies 

such as Foskor, the Dwarsriver 

mine near Steelport, provincial 

government departments, various 

municipalities, ABSA bank 

and the Industrial Development 

Corporation (IDC). 

The credit policy and the 

Credit Procedure Manual are under 

consideration by the approval 

authority. During the previous financial 

year, LEDA had a return 

on investment in the Enterprise 

Development and Finance 

division of R4-million. 

NEW BUSINESS 

Projected cash flow statement – 

12 months 

Projected financial statements – 

3 years 

Interim financial statements 

Current budget 

Bank statement 

Criteria for funding 

• The business must be 

registered 

• Tax clearance certificate from 

the relevant authorities is 

required 

• Non-refundable application 

fee. (R500 - R5 000) 

• Management must comply 

with the business statues of 

South Africa 

• Viable business plan or 

company profile: 

EXISTING BUSINESS 

Cash flow projections – 12 months 

Financial statements - 3 years 

Projected financial statements - 

3 years 

Interim financial statements 

Current budget 

Bank statements (3 months) 

BUSINESS AND TECHNICAL TRAINING 

OFFERED BY LEDA EDFD 

• Public service supply chain procedure and related processes 

• Development of business plan 

• Business customer relations 

• Business marketing 

• Understanding income tax 

• Project management 

• Financial management 

• Business cost determination and pricing 

• Automotive 

• Construction and building related vocation skills including, 

bricklaying, plastering, carpentry, plumbing, electrical and 

welding 

• Hospitality 

• Farming and agricultural training 

BUSINESS 

SUPPORT OFFERED 

BY LEDA EDFD 

• Co-operative development 

• Business incubation 

• Business advisory services 

• Business registration and 

statutory compliance 

• Development of business 

plans and profiles 

• Business linkages 

• Mentoring and counselling 

27 


FOCUS 

Risima Housing and 

Finance Corporation 

Providing access to housing and unlocking 

value in rural areas. 

The Risima Housing and Finance Corporation, a subsidiary of Limpopo 

Economic Development Agency (LEDA), exists to provide 

housing finance for citizens of Limpopo. The word Risima is derived 

from the Tsonga word for “value”. 

The CEO of the organisation, Dr Shima Nokaneng, says that the particular 

target market is the lower-income group, who “sometimes have 

challenges getting approvals from commercial banks”. 

A primary focus for Risima is the “gap” market. This refers to prospective 

home owners who earn too much to qualify for state assistance (for example, 

RDP housing) but not enough to qualify for mortgage loans. Typically, 

this covers incomes ranging from about R3 500 to R15 000 per month. 

Partnerships 

Two important programmes are run by Risima in conjunction with 

national and provincial government departments. 

Government Employees Housing Scheme (GEHS): Together with 

the National Department of Public Service and Administration, Risima 

arranges for a non-mortgaged financial 

product to assist government 

employees get a foot on the 

property ladder. 

Dr Nokaneng reports that a 

default rate of less than 2% proves 

the value of such a scheme: “Our 

advantage is that we target government 

employees which helps 

to reduce risk. Applicants have 

to be employed with a good 

credit risk and then we check affordability 

and match that with 

documentation such as payslips.” 

Finance Linked Individual 

Subsidy Programme (FLISP): In 

partnership with the Limpopo 

Department of Cooperative 


28

FOCUS 

Affairs, Human Settlements and 

Traditional Affairs (COGHSTA), 

Risima distributes grants to applicants 

who qualify for money 

to make up the shortfall between 

an asking price and what the applicant 

can afford or if a deposit 

is needed but the applicant can’t 

fund it. The gap market is the 

target market for FLISP. 

The subsidy is being rolled out 

in the Polokwane suburb of Bendor, 

Lephalale and other regions of the 

province. This comprises threebedroomed 

houses and semidetached 

townhouses. 

Mining houses: A new area of 

cooperation is imminent in that 

Risima and a number of mining 

houses such as Exxaro, Amplats 

and Northam (at Thabazimbi) have 

been in discussion about working 

together to deliver housing. 

Preparatory work has been done 

and concrete steps should be seen 

in the fourth quarter of 2017. 

Expansion 

Risima’s mandate extends across 

each of the five regions of the 

province of Limpopo and it 

currently has four offices. As of 

October 2017, the company head 

office will be in the provincial 

capital, Polokwane, on the corner 

of Rabie and Van Rensburg 

streets. “Our new offices will be 

bigger,” says Dr Nokaneng, “and 

we will be more accessible to 

customers and stakeholders.” 

New offices are also to be 

established in areas such as 

Makhado (Louis Trichardt), 

Lephalale, Musina and Modimolle 

to further widen the company’s 

footprint. 

This geographic expansion is proof that demand is on the rise and 

that Risima’s more aggressive approach is paying off. The large coal 

mine and new power station at Lephalale mean that a further project 

comprising 2 700 units is in the works in that area. 

LOANS GRANTED 

Region 

Loans granted 

Capricorn 61 653 927 

Mopani 10 587 032 

Sekhukhune 9 174 632 

Vhembe 14 998 829 

Waterberg 14 439 211 

Total 110 853 631 

GOALS 2016/17 

Risima 2016/17 Target Achieved 

Home loans 190 191 

Loan approvals R78.9-million R110.8-million 

Contribution to LEDA income 5.7% 7.5% 

29 


FOCUS 

The company has loans to the value of R432.4-million as at 31 March 

2017. “Because of the expansion of our footprint we are in the process 

of raising more capital,” reports Dr Nokaneng. The CEO stresses the 

point that Risima is self-sustaining, with no grant paid by the Provincial 

Treasury. A clean audit was also achieved in the most recent financial 

reporting period. “Our profit for the most recent financial year was 

R32-million.” 

Innovation 

An innovative approach to unlocking the value of land in traditional 

areas may be on the cards if the National Home Builders Registration 

Council (NHBRC) approves a plan related to the conversion of Permissions 

to Occupy (PTO). Where there are no title deeds it is difficult to establish 

value, get loans or use land as collateral for buying anything else. Risima 

sees potential in converting PTOs to title deeds and is looking at deep rural 

areas such as Vhembe and Sekhukhune. Even people who might work in 

cities don’t want to give up their ties to traditional land, but they also want to 

get certainty of ownership and the right to leverage that ownership if they 

RISIMA HOUSING FINANCE CORPORATION 

Risima Housing Finance Corporation (Pty) Ltd was originally 

known as Gazankulu Finance Company (Pty) Ltd, established 

in April 2000. Risima is a wholly owned subsidiary of LEDA; it 

falls under Schedule 3D of the Public Finance Management Act 

1 of 1999 (PFMA) as a provincial public entity, established by 

Limpopo Department of Economic Development, Environment 

and Tourism in terms of the Limpopo Development Corporation 

Act 5 of 1994 (LDCA). 

Risima was established for the purpose of giving effect to 

Section 3 (1) of the LDCA which requires LEDA, among others, to 

provide housing in Limpopo. Risima has been created to respond 

to the need to create access to home loan finance to all residents 

of Limpopo, irrespective of where they live, in so doing: assist 

LEDA to achieve its objective of job creation and empowerment 

in Limpopo through housing construction, in support of the 

Provincial Employment, Growth and Development Plan. 

Key focus areas are to: 

• To provide access to home loan finance and property development 

finance to residents of the province in both rural and 

urban areas 

• To create shareholder value and facilitate employment 

creation and economic growth 

• Ensure the economic, social and environmental sustainability 

of Risima. 

want to. The Risima scheme will be 

limited to government employees, 

thus reducing risk to the lender. 

Risima financial 

products 

• Residential building construction: 

for clients to build a house 

• Purchasing of existing residential 

houses: clients buy existing 

houses 

• Purchasing of sites: clients purchase 

vacant sites 

• Extensions and renovations: 

clients improving their houses 

• Switch bonds: moving 

a bond from another 

financial institution 

to Risima 

• Installation of solar water heating 

systems 

• Additional loan: clients with 

equity on their properties can 

apply for additional loans 

• Access bond: available to clients 

who pay more than the 

required instalment on their 

home loans. Clients can apply 

for the funds when they 

need them. 

CONTACT INFO 

Lebowakgomo (head 

office) 

Tel: +27 15 633 4732 or 

+27 15 633 4700 

Polokwane (regional office) 

Tel: +27 15 295 5120 

Ritavi (regional office) 

Tel: +27 15 303 1731 

Thohoyandou (regional 

office) 

Tel: +27 15 962 4900 


30

Limpopo Connexion 

Transitioning from a resource-based economy to a 

knowledge economy. 

FOCUS 

Limpopo Province is taking active steps to develop its information 

and communications technology (ICT) sector to the point 

where it can take the provincial economy to a higher level 

and improve the delivery of government services. 

The agency charged with achieving these aims is Limpopo 

Connexion. Baldwin Ramosobane, Acting CEO: Limpopo Connexion, 

gives the broad aims of the agency in these terms: “A key measure is 

to say how would Limpopo Connexion transform Limpopo from a 

resource-based province to a knowledge-based province.” 

The Knowledge Economy refers to the use of knowledge to produce 

economic benefits through tangible and intangible assets. The concept 

refers to the manner in which various high-technology businesses, 

especially computer software, telecommunications and virtual services, 

as well as educational and research institutions, could contribute 

to a country's economy. Creating a strong and innovative ICT sector is 

a vital step on the way to establishing a knowledge-based economy. 

World leaders are increasingly adapting to the fact that a Fourth 

Industrial Revolution is under way. The first was powered by 

water and steam, the second used 

electricity and introduced mass 

production and the third revolution 

in the global economy related 

to automation, electronics and 

computers. Now a Fourth Industrial 

Revolution is combining a range of 

scientific breakthroughs at great 

speed: central to the concept is 

connectivity and access to data. 

This new economy is creating 

new jobs and creating the potential 

for jobs in the future in sectors 

that don’t yet exist. Only by having 

a strong and adaptable communications 

and data network can a 

regional economy take advantage 

of these changes as they occur. 

31 


FOCUS 

Ramosobane cites aspects such as digitalisation, robotics, 3D printing, 

green solutions and big data as elements of the new economy that 

are driven through ICT. As a consequence, one of the key objectives 

of Limpopo Connexion is the development of broadband telecommunication 

infrastructure for the province. 

Planners are looking beyond the ICT sector in isolation. As 

Ramosobane notes, “There have to be ways of using technology in 

different sectors of the economy, because ICT is all pervasive. Whether 

it’s finance, whether it’s roads, or it's construction or mining, ICT and 

technology will be used in those sectors.” 

With Limpopo’s great strength as a resource-based economy, what are 

the ways that ICT can further develop the mining and agricultural sectors? 

Miners can cut costs enormously if they use up-to-date data- collection 

methods rather than traditional methods. Data-driven research can 

help to make sure that communities benefit to a greater degree when 

beneficiation of minerals or agricultural produce takes place. 

And Ramosobane believes that there is great potential beyond 

the resource economy: “When you talk about tourism, how do we sell 

Limpopo globally without actually going there, but using innovation 

systems and technology?” 

Strategic objectives 

Open access broadband telecommunications network infrastructure: 

Government, business, rural communities, students and citizens 

at large should all be able to access affordable broadband infrastructure 

services. This initiative should empower community members to 

participate in the mainstream economy. Says Ramosobane, "Any person 

in the province, be it plumbers, be it students at the universities, 

learners and educators at high schools, ordinary people, households; 

they should all be able to have access to the affordable broadband 

infrastructure services and cheaper technologies." 

A science and technology park (STP): An STP is a space, physical or 

cyberspatial, managed by a specialised professional team that provides 

value-added services, whose aim is to increase the competitiveness 

of its region or territory of influence by stimulating a culture of quality 

and innovation among its associated businesses and knowledge-based 

institutions, organising the transfer of knowledge and technology from 

its sources to companies and to the marketplace, and by actively fostering 

the creation of new and sustainable innovation-based companies 

through incubation and spin-off processes. It must attract international 

ICT companies to the province where they can interact and partner with 

academic institutions and local businesses. The international companies 

can originate (and pay for) research projects that are directly 

relevant to the work they are doing, rather than doing research for 

research’s sake. Provide direct links between the private sector, government 

and universities. 

Free and open source software 

(FOSS): Providing free 

and open source software 

to the citizens of Limpopo 

cuts the cost of ICT, thus enabling 

small businesses to gain access to 

the advantages of the Knowledge 

Economy without having to pay 

high prices for licensed software 

packages. 

A provincial FOSS strategy 

has been adopted and 

several pilot programmes 

rolled out. 

These programms include 

systems such as a Wildlife Trade 

Permit System, Tourism Guide 

Registration Systems, a Consumer 

Affairs System, a Farmer’s Portal 

and Mobile Application, and an 

eHeritage Database and Portal 

among others. 

Limpopo Connexion, in partnership 

with Tirelo Bosha-Public 

Service Improvement Facility, a 

bilateral programme between 

Belgium and South Africa 

facilitated by the Department of 

Public Service and Administration 

(DPSA), has implemented an open 

source-based offline content 

project in 15 schools previously 

without Internet connectivity. 

With feedback from the Limpopo 

Department of Education and 

principals from schools, the project 

will be expanded by a further 

grant from the Belgium government 

to 45 more schools in the 

Province. There was significant 

improvement in the matric results 

due to the introduction of 

the system. 

Training in FOSS is being undertaken 

in partnership with 

SUSE, a large international open 

source software company. 


32

FOCUS 

ICT Skills and SMME 

Development to promote small, 

medium and micro-enterprises 

(SMMEs): The objective is to ensure 

that small enterprise owners 

and entrepreneurs are able to 

create and grow their businesses. 

With access to broadband and 

to free and open source software, 

SMME owners can be “part of 

the global village”, according to 

Ramosobane. Not only can ICT 

empower SMMEs and entrepreneurs 

to improve their businesses 

in terms of marketing, ordering 

and stock-taking, but there are 

myriad opportunities for SMMEs 

where ICT is central to the business 

itself: web design, e-commerce 

and online multi-media are 

some examples. 

A study has shown that 75% 

of ICT SMMEs are in the Capricorn 

and Waterberg districts. Better access 

for other areas is one of the 

goals of Limpopo Connexion. To 

incubate, support and accelerate 

start-up companies, Limpopo 

Connexion wants to ensure 

that the core location between 

the major corporation and the 

research institution and government 

will support the commercial 

research items. From within 

the Science and Technology 

Park there will be opportunities 

for mentorship and access to a 

range of information for SMME 

operators. 

Broadband for all 

Rolling out broadband within 

Limpopo is a key responsibility of 

Limpopo Connexion. A priority 

goal of the Limpopo Provincial 

Government is to establish a secure, 

shared, open access and affordable broadband Wide Area 

Network (WAN) within Limpopo. 

Broadband infrastructure also forms part of the strategic objectives 

identified in the Department of Communication Strategic Plan, the 

National Information Society and Development Plan, the Green Paper 

on the National Integrated ICT Policy, and e-Government initiatives. 

Both the Limpopo Development Plan (LDP) and the Provincial Inclusive 

Information Society Strategy outline specific ICT objectives. 

Several investment opportunities for the private sector are associated 

with the rollout of broadband in Limpopo. “Limpopo Province 

will be a key opportunity for entrepreneurs and investors,” reports 

Ramosobane. There are the opportunities for both large and small 

companies, “The major companies will do the construction of the big 

fibre infrastructure and then the small companies will actually connect 

households through last mile connectivity.” 

Phase one of the rollout will see the city of Polokwane, the Capricorn 

District and provincial key points connected. This phase of the project 

will kick in during the third quarter of 2017. 

Phase two will see broadband connectivity expanded to cover the 

whole province of Limpopo. Given the geographic and economic 

footprint of the province, a large number of companies, government 

departments and businesses will actually be covered by phase one. 

At this stage, phase one is envisaged to last for a period of three 

years, but Ramosobane says that the active involvement of the private 

sector may hasten progress: 

"As government, we want to work with the private sector. We want 

to say, the private sector must understand what is the vision of the 

Limpopo Connexion and Limpopo Province in terms of broadband. 

If they continue working with us, we believe that with the private 

sector we can achieve the goal of connecting all of Limpopo quicker 

than we thought." 

33 


ADVERTORIAL 

Making it easier to do business with Nedbank 

Whole-view Business Banking 

Loderick Lubisi, Nedbank Provincial General Manager for Retail and 

Business Banking for Mpumalanga and Limpopo, explains how 

Nedbank can help business owners in the region. 

on what’s most important to you – running your 

business,’ says Lubisi. 

In line with our new brand proposition encouraging 

clients to see money differently, our Mpumalanga 

and Limpopo agriteams are committed to providing 

key support, as well as advisory and business services 

to all roleplayers involved in the agrispace in both 

provinces. We will share our financial expertise 

and play a role in advancing profitable, sustainable 

practices throughout the agricultural production and 

consumption value chain. 

There is good news for Mpumalanga 

and Limpopo business owners and 

entrepreneurs seeking a unique banking 

experience: Nedbank Business Banking 

has business managers, located across 

both provinces, specialising in commercial 

industries as well as the agricultural sector. 

Lubisi says his team is ready to assist clients with 

professional advice, industry-specific solutions 

and a comprehensive range of financial products 

and services. 

‘At Nedbank Business Banking we believe that you 

need a financial partner who not only understands 

your circumstances and aspirations, but also provides 

you with relevant solutions and a banking experience 

that is hassle-free. This allows you to concentrate 

We recognise that farmers today face many 

challenges and that to remain competitive they 

continually have to improve and adopt best practices 

and new technologies. 

‘We encourage you to see money differently with 

Whole-view Business Banking’, says Lubisi. 

‘We are also involved in a number of initiatives with 

the public sector, ensuring that such partnerships 

support provincial government goals in respect of job 

creation and growing the economy,’ Lubisi concludes. 

Should you be interested in taking your business to the 

next level, please call Loderick Lubisi on 

+27 (0)13 759 4910, send an email to 

loderickl@nedbank.co.za or 

visit www.nedbank.co.za.

ADVERTORIAL 

Nedbank Business Bundle is a game changer 

with savings and personalised services for 

small enterprises 

The new Business Bundle from Nedbank is a game changer for small 

enterprises in Mpumalanga and Limpopo, offering the best value for 

money when compared to rival offerings. 

With the country’s challenging economic 

environment, the Business Bundle not only 

offers you personalised banking services, 

but also critical tools to save – with up to 

40% savings on monthly banking fees – 

contributing directly to the bottomline at a 

time when every cent counts. 

In line with Nedbank’s new brand proposition to see 

money differently, the Business Bundle resonates with 

the bank’s commitment to do good by promoting 

small enterprises. 

‘As a bank for small businesses we are committed 

to partnering with entrepreneurs to help grow their 

businesses. As such, Nedbank is always looking at 

ways in which we can help unlock the value of our 

clients’ businesses. We support their business growth 

journeys by providing practical tools to help them 

run their businesses,’ says Loderick Lubisi, Nedbank 

Provincial General Manager, Retail and Business 

Banking for Mpumalanga and Limpopo. 

‘Small businesses are the lifeblood of our economy. 

Nedbank has, over the years, instituted various 

interventions aimed at giving support to the smallbusiness 

sector.’ 

Trust us to protect your business against 

everyday risk 

Stella Tedeschi, Regional Manager of Broker 

Channels for Mpumalanga and Limpopo, says 

Nedbank Insurance is not a one-size-fits-all 

business. 

Nedbank Insurance has evolved into a business 

that provides integrated insurance to individual 

and business clients. Our offering comprises 

comprehensive short-term insurance solutions, 

life insurance solutions and investments. 

Nedbank Insurance provides a comprehensive 

offering of short-term products on behalf of 

blue-chip insurers. Should you be interested in 

expert advice on the type of cover that is exactly 

right for your business needs, look no further. 

Nedbank has a team of specialists ready to provide you with 

information necessary to allow you to make an informed 

decision. For more information call Stella Tedeschi on 

+27 (0)12 436 7659, send an email to 

stellat@nedbankinsurance.co.za, 

or visit www.nedbank.co.za. 

To see how Nedbank can help your small business reach its 

goals call Loderick Lubisi on +27 (0)13 759 4910, send an 

email to loderickl@nedbank.co.za or 

visit www.nedbank.co.za/business. 

Nedbank Ltd Reg No 1951/000009/06. Nedbank Ltd Reg Authorised No 1951/000009/06 financial 

Authorised financial services services and registered and registered credit credit provider provider (NCRCP16).

OLD MUTUAL ENABLING 

POSITIVE FUTURES 

IN LIMPOPO 

Old Mutual South Africa (OMSA) is a significant participant in the South African economy and committed to 

enabling positive futures for all our stakeholders, especially our customers. We offer a range of financial services 

that span investment, life assurance, asset management, banking, healthcare and general insurance. 

To ensure that we have our fingers on the pulse of each of our nine provinces, Old Mutual has established 

leadership boards in each province to serve as links between the province and our business. These Provincial 

Management Boards, or PMBs, are your primary point of contact with us. Together we can ensure that Old Mutual 

makes a positive impact on the future of this province and its people. 

MEET LAWRENCE GABELA 

Limpopo Provincial Management Board, Chairperson 

“Plans remain ideas until they are executed.” 

Limpopo is a growing region with lots of business investment opportunities such as the 

Waterberg and Musina districts. 

As PMB CHAIRPERSON I undertake to: 

• Commit to serve the Board according to the mandate and the vision of the Board constitution and take the 

province to a higher level. 

• Work together as the unit for IFS strategy. 

• Defend and grow our current market share (which is currently at 22%) by taking advantage of our wide 

branch network and other business units like Masisizane that make an impactful and uplifting difference to 

our wonderful province and the communities in which we operate. 

• Remain driven by our PMB principles and its values and continue to strive to do great things for our business 

and our customers and our country. 

GET IN TOUCH: email LimpopoPMB@oldmutual.com 

ombds 4.17.10479.02 

INVESTMENTS I SAVINGS I PROTECTION 

Old Mutual is a Licensed Financial Services Provider

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NEED A FINANCIAL PARTNER THAT 

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• Caring for vulnerable communities 

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INVESTMENTS I SAVINGS I PROTECTION 

ombds 6.2017 L10479.6 


OLD MUTUAL FOUNDATION CASE STUDY IN LIMPOPO 

Old Mutual encourages and supports staff to get engaged in community projects by 

volunteering their personal time or contributing financial support. Through the Staff Payroll 

Giving programme, employees can support social causes through monthly donations from their 

salaries. Their donations are further matched rand-for-rand by the Old Mutual Foundation and 

then distributed to deserving organisations, such as the Elim Hlanganani Care for the Aged in 

Limpopo. Funding of R500 000 was recently provided towards the holistic care of the frail and 

aged in the area. One of the ways assistance is given is through the training of home-based 

caregivers to attend to the needs of the elderly. As Director Florence Khosa says, “We ensure that 

no-one in our community is left alone without help.” 

The MASISIZANE FUND focuses on enterprise 

development and job creation to help alleviate poverty 

and improve food security in South Africa. This is 

achieved through encouraging entrepreneurship and 

capacity development and financing of micro, small 

and medium enterprises (SMMEs). Preference is given 

to SMMEs with 51% plus ownership by women, youth 

or people with disabilities. 

The Masisizane Fund disbursed R147m worth of funds 

in 2016 through soft loans in the three high-impact 

sectors and facilitated the creation of 862 jobs against 

a target of 625 jobs. 

In Limpopo Masisizane disbursed funds of 

R14 013 840 across four clients creating 68 new jobs. 

MASISIZANE CASE STUDY IN LIMPOPO 

Sasesikani Co-operative 

Sasesikani Co-op is situated in Mahonisi Village in 

the Vhembe District Municipality. The co-op was 

established in 2004 and is managed by a board of 

directors of the co-op that consists of nine members 

who are all contributing actively in the business. The 

co-op has created eight jobs for the people around the 

village (excluding themselves). 

Most of the members are from the village and not 

very literate. However, there have been changes in 

management since the previous General Manager, 

Mr Khoza was involved. There are now more clearly 

defined roles in the business as there is a treasurer, 

an administrator and a production manager. The other 

members are supervising transport, cleaning of chicken 

houses and the process as a whole. 

The co-op members have gone for training in egg 

production, marketing and business management. 

Despite all of this there is still a need for further 

training in business management and administration to 

effectively run this business. 

Masisizane Fund Loan R2.16 m 

Number of jobs 

17 jobs facilitated 

WANT TO HELP BUILD THE PLATFORM 

FOR FINANCIAL INCLUSION? 

Financial education is the gateway to financial 

inclusion. The Old Mutual Financial Wellbeing 

programme promotes financial literacy and awareness 

across market segments in line with the Financial Sector 

Charter. We offer highly effective financial education 

and support programmes to help South Africans take 

control of their finances. 

Between 2007 and end of 2016 more than 589 808 

people were reached through face-to-face workshops 

held for communities as well as employees in the public 

and private sector. 

In 2016 more than 88 000 individuals participated in 

our On the Money workshops nationally, with 24 674 

participating in our Fin360 programmes. 

In Limpopo 7 687 individuals were trained in our 

Old Mutual On the Money programmes. 

For more information, contact Lawrence 

Gabela at LimpopoPMB@oldmutual.com


KEY SECTORS 

Overviews of the main economic 

sectors of Limpopo 

Agriculture 40 

Mining 44 

Energy 60 

Water 61 

Transport and logistics 62 

ICT 68 

Banking and financial services 76 

Development finance and 

SMME support 78 

Education and training 84 

Tourism 86 

IMAGE COURTESY OF DE BEERS VENETIA MINE 


40

LISTING 


OVERVIEW 

Agriculture 

The strong agri-processing sector still has massive potential to grow in Limpopo. 

Agriculture has been identified as a key driver of the regional 

economy by the Provincial Government of Limpopo. Agriprocessing 

in particular is being targeted as a means of 

increasing the levels of manufacturing in the province. 

The percentage contribution of Limpopo agriculture to national 

agriculture is 7.6% although its contribution to provincial GDP is 

just 2.3%. Agri-processing has enormous potential to expand in 

every sub-sector. 

The establishment of agri-parks and co-operatives and support for 

youth in taking to farming are among the key initiatives that provincial 

government is implementing in support of these goals. 

The agricultural riches of the province are well known and its fruits 

and vegetables form an important part of South Africa’s export basket. 

Companies like ZZ2 are major contributors to the country’s 

annual production of 120 000 tons of avocadoes. Of the current crop, 

SECTOR INSIGHT 

Thousands of hectares are 

being planted with avocadoes 

and macadamias. 

• Agri-parks will help 

emerging farmers. 

• The Industrial 

Development Corporation 

(IDC) is investing in citrus 

farming. 

about half is currently produced 

in two Limpopo regions, Letaba 

and Tzaneen. Exports to the US 


42

OVERVIEW 

and Europe, which constitute almost 

all of South Africa’s foreign 

market for avocadoes, are rising 

exponentially. 

In response to this demand, 

and the potential of the Chinese 

market, almost 1 000ha per year 

of new land is being planted with 

avocadoes in South Africa. 

The same amount of new 

macadamia planting is under 

way every year, according to the 

Southern African Macadamia 

Growers’ Association (SAMAC), 

adding to the existing 19 000ha. 

The other two really big sellers 

are mangoes and tomatoes. 

Limpopo grows three-quarters of 

South Africa’s mangoes and twothirds 

of its tomatoes. 

The Waterberg District produces 

large quantities of red 

meat, Capricorn has potatoes in 

abundance, Vhembe in the north 

specialises in citrus and subtropical 

fruits, Mopani has those fruits 

too – and the Mopani worm. 

The Sekhukhune region in the 

south-east is a grain-producing 

area. One of the best-known 

products of the region is Amarula 

cream liqueur. 

Initiatives 

Five Agri-parks will be established 

in Limpopo, as part of 

the R2-billion plan of the national 

Department of Rural 

Development and Land Reform 

to roll out services that will help 

farmers get better access to market 

and storage facilities. 

Support in terms of equipment 

hire and information will be 

available. Markets where farmers 

can sell their produce and processing plants such as abattoirs will form 

part of the parks and farmers will gain access to market information and 

bigger markets through the Rural Urban Marketing Centre. 

Training will also be on offer at the parks and the aim is to get local 

farmers owning 70% of the facility. 

The University of Venda and the University of Limpopo are working 

on research into crop and seed improvements, particularly related to 

climate change adaptation. 

The provincial government gave support to 3 000 households 

to produce their own food in their backyard gardens during the 

2016/17 financial year and hopes to increase this number to over 

5 000 households. 

The Ilima/Letsema conditional grant, which strives to improve 

productivity of emerging farmers in Limpopo, disbursed funds to 47 

projects benefiting a total of 2 333 beneficiaries. A total of 680 farmers 

were assisted in gaining access to markets. In the 2017/18 financial year, 

the Ilima/Letsema grant total of R67-million will support 90 projects, 15 

538 emerging farmers: 2 718 smallholder farmers, 12 791 subsistence 

farmers and 29 black commercial farmers. 

Other programmes were badly affected by drought conditions, the 

Fetsa Tlala programme, for example, having to be scaled back to work 

only with farming areas with enough irrigation water. Having come 

through the long-term drought in the early months of 2017, Limpopo 

and several other northern provinces then had to deal with the effects 

of the Fall Army Worm. It was detected early and strong measures were 

taken to mitigate its effect. 

The Phethwane Integrated Aquaculture Project stalled after a bright 

start in 2011, but a Fishery Imbizo held at the Tompi Seleka College 

of Agriculture in Marble Hall aimed to resuscitate the project. The 

national Deputy Minister of Agriculture visited the project in late 2015 

and encouraged local fishers to aim to supply 500 tons of fish. Iran was 

mentioned as a potential market for the fish. 

The Tompi Seleka College is itself in the spotlight, having been 

reopened in 2015. Together with Madzivhandila College (in the Thula- 

Thula Municipality in Vhembe District), enrolment has increased from 

140 in 2015 to 222 in 2016. Limpopo is trying to grow its own farmers. 

Location 

Limpopo’s location gives it a strategic advantage in terms of providing 

fresh produce to Gauteng, the densely urbanised economic centre of 

South Africa. 

Within Limpopo, the Mooketsi Market has used its central position 

to boost trade in farming produce. The market is at the crossroads 

of two busy routes: Polokwane to Giyani (R81) and Tzaneen to Louis 

Trichardt (R36-N1). 


OVERVIEW 

The market is owned by ZZ2, FGX (which facilitates transactions 

between buyers and sellers) and the RSA Group, which is the market 

agent and has about 30% of market share of fresh produce markets 

in South Africa. 

The Vhembe District in the far north and the Letaba Valley in the 

eastern Mopani District are major contributors to the Johannesburg 

Fresh Produce Market, with Limpopo growers as a group contributing 

about 45% of the produce sold at Johannesburg Fresh Produce Market, 

Africa’s biggest market. 

ZZ2 is the major brand of Bertie van Zyl (Pty) Ltd, which produces 

160 000 tons of tomatoes per year. The company also specialises in 

onions, both of which appear in different forms under 12 brand names. 

The company has large farms in four areas of the province: Mooketsi, 

Politsi, Polokwane and Musina; it also operates in the Western and 

Eastern Cape. The company has 8 000 full-time employees and is 

increasing its production of avocadoes and litchis. 

Westfalia is another huge enterprise, part of the Hans Merensky 

Group, and it is world’s largest avocado grower. It also produces significant 

quantities of mango, litchi, citrus and macadamia and has three 

agri-processing plants in the province. 

Avocado oil is processed in Tzaneen, juice and avocado purée 

is made at Politsi and dried mangoes are produced at Hoedspruit. 

Westfalia has large farms in the Letaba River Valley (Constantia Estate), 

the Hoedspruit district (Marieskop Estate) and in the Mooketsi Valley 

(Goedgelegen Estate). Organic avocados are also farmed in KwaZulu- 

Natal Province. 

The Westfalia Nursery produces more than 130 000 trees every year. 

Westfalia Technological Services has six teams researching areas such 

as pathology, horticulture and genetic resources. 

Relatively new entries into commercial farming are former cooperatives, 

and they have proved successful. The two most active in 

Limpopo are NTKLA (with its headquarters in Modimolle) and Afgri, 

South Africa’s biggest agricultural company, which has its headquarters 

in Centurion (Gauteng). 

NTKLA is a shareholder in Venda Roller Mills in Thohoyandou and 

operates 10 grain silos, 23 retail outlets, 28 flour depots and one coldstorage 

facility. 

Crops 

The Levubu Valley in the north is particularly fertile with guavas and 

macadamia nuts among the crops that thrive there. 

Valley Farms is a successful enterprise that grows fruits such as mangoes 

and guavas, and produces concentrates, purées and dried fruits. 

Afgri’s soya plant at Mokopane (Nedan) has increased 

annual production to 195 000 tons of soya beans and 60 000 tons 

of sunflower, the result of a 

capital injection of R180-million 

in 2011. Greenway Farms supplies 

about 45% of the fresh-market 

carrots consumed in Southern 

Africa under the Rugani brand. A 

R6-million carrot combineharvester 

is the only one of its 

kind in South Africa. 

Letaba Citrus Processors is a 

part of the African Realty Trust, 

which also owns two large farms: 

Letaba Estates and Richmond 

Estates. The Rhodes Food Group 

has a canned vegetable facility 

near Louis Trichardt. 

Cotton is grown at Loskop, 

North and South Flats, Wiepe and 

Dwaalboom/Thabazimbi. There 

are 2 855ha under irrigation and 

a further 326ha of dry land operations. 

Limpopo provides about 

32% of the national harvest. 

Citrus 

Most of South Africa’s citrus and 

subtropical fruit comes from the 

eastern part of Limpopo. Soft and 

time-sensitive fruits, like avocados, 

are exported out of the Port 

of Cape Town and transported to 

that city by truck. Citrus is taken to 

the ports of Durban or Maputo. 

The Industrial Development 

Corporation (IDC) is getting behind 

citrus farming in Limpopo. 

Falling under the IDC’s Agro- 

Industries Strategic Business Unit, 

a funding agreement has been 

signed with Naranja Packers 

which will see new farms established, 

established farms converted 

to different cultivars and 

the packing house expanded. The 

brands Clemengold and Sweet C 


44

OVERVIEW 

are marketed under Indigo Fruit 

Farming, which is wholly owned 

by ANB Investments. The packing 

house in Burgersfort processes up 

to 600 large crates of fruit a day 

in season, with each crate containing 

about 350kg of fruit – or 

slightly more than 2 000 tons. 

Citrus exports to the EU have 

grown steadily. In volume, exports 

to the EU in 2015 accounted for 

40% of total citrus exports (30% 

oranges, 66% mandarins, 24% 

lemons), up from 36% in the 

prior season. 

A new entrant to the export 

market is the GOGO Group, located 

in the Loskop Valley, where 

intensive citrus cultivation takes 

place. Exports will be sent to the 

United States of America through 

parent company EKM Exports. 

The Zebediela Citrus Estate 

has been bought by the Bjatlhadi 

community with the support of 

the Limpopo Local Economic 

Development Programme, and 

the focus has shifted from bulk 

supply to producing smaller, 

consumer-friendly quantities. 

Livestock 

Government planning at provincial 

level includes the promotion 

of red and white meat “clusters” 

along all the development corridors 

identified in the province. 

This includes the promotion of 

hygienic practices, the establishment 

of small-scale abattoirs 

and assistance in marketing of 

products. 

The province has about onemillion 

beef cattle, about 7.5% 

of the national herd. A new 

indigenous breed of cattle has been developed called the Pinz²yl, from 

breeding Pinzgauer and Nguni stock. This is an initiative of the same 

farming group that grows the ZZ2 tomato, with the name derived from 

the famous European breed and the name of the farmer who started 

it all, Mr Bertie van Zyl. 

International demand for venison is in the region of 50 000 tons 

per year and South Africa only supplies about 2 000 tons of it – a 

clear opportunity for Limpopo entrepreneurs to grow their share of 

the market. 

ONLINE RESOURCES 

Agro-Food Technology Station, Limpopo University: 

www.ul.ac.za 

ARC Institute for Tropical and Subtropical Crops: 

www.arc.agric.co.za 

Citrus Growers Association: www.cga.co.za 

Deciduous Fruit Producers Trust: www.dfpt.co.za 

Limpopo Department of Agriculture: www.lda.gov.za 

National Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries: 

www.daff.gov.za 

South African Fruit Farms: www.safruitfarms.com 

South African Macadamia Growers’ Association: 

www.samac.org.za 

South African Subtropical Growers’ Association: 

www.subtrop.net 

South African Sugar Association: www.org.za 


OVERVIEW 

Mining 

Special economic zones open up possibilities for investors in processing. 

IMAGE COURTESY OF DE BEERS VENETIA MINE 

Diamonds in the north, platinum and chrome in the west and 

east and coal just about everywhere – Limpopo Province has 

extraordinary mineral wealth. The mining sector routinely 

contributes up to 30% of regional GDP but this has fallen back 

somewhat with reduced platinum operations in response to a weak 

global market for the commodity. 

Although there are efforts under way to try to diversify the Limpopo 

economy to reduce the dependence on the mineral sector, there is a 

parallel effort to use the underground riches of the province to stimulate 

the growth of the manufacturing sector. A series of measures have been 

developed by the Limpopo Economic Development Agency (LEDA) 

to create the circumstances where processing plants and products 

can add value to the minerals. A large part of strategy centres around 

Special Economic Zones (SEZs), a nationally certified geographic area 

where special concessions and tax breaks apply, intended to encourage 

inward investment. 

The Provincial Government of Limpopo wants to see the supply chain 

of mines heavily weighted in favour of local businesses and particularly 

small, medium and micro-enterprises (SMMEs). The government has 

committed to upgrading informal settlements around mining towns. 

Major investments in Limpopo include an ongoing project by De 

Beers in Musina to convert its Venetia mine from an open-pit mine to 


Carbon-neutral mining is the 

goal for researchers at De 

Beers’ Venetia mine. 

• Impala’s refinery is to be 

powered by fuel cells. 

• Exxaro has launched 

its vision for mining 

sustainably. 

• Ivanplats’ new Platreef 

mine may become the 

biggest PGM mine in the 

world. 

a vertical shaft mine and a multibillion 

new platinum mine project 

led by a Canadian firm (in partnership 

with Japanese companies). 

Silicon Smelters (the largest 

charcoal producer in Africa) and 

Anglo Platinum’s smelting facility, 


46

OVERVIEW 

one of three run by the company, 

are both located in Polokwane. 

Northam Platinum’s metallurgical 

complex at its Zondereinde mine 

processes Merensky and UG2 ores 

separately. 

Platinum 

With a depressed platinum price, 

platinum miners are hoping that 

demand from the fuel cell industry 

will replace the decline in 

demand for catalytic converters. 

Impala Platinum (Implats) 

has an interest in two big operations 

on the eastern limb of 

the Bushveld Igneous Complex. 

Marula (in which Implats is a 

73% shareholder) is in Limpopo 

province, about 50km north of 

Burgersfort. South of the same 

town, in Mpumalanga, Implats 

(49%) is in a joint venture with 

African Rainbow Minerals (ARM) 

at the Two Rivers mine. The mine 

has a concentrator plant and has 

a life-of-mine offtake agreement 

with Impala Refining Services. 

Impala announced in early 

2017 that it intends to take the 

refinery (in Springs) off the Eskom 

grid, and power the refinery 

using fuel cell technology. Power 

will come from an 8MW Doosan 

Fuel Cell. 

Even though the Twickenham 

mine of Anglo American Platinum 

(Amplats) has been put on care 

and maintenance, lots of work 

is going on there. Amplats is 

testing trackless mechanised 

mining in that hope that automation 

will bring down costs sufficiently 

to make it economical to 

mine again. 

Despite uncertainty on the global market, Northam Platinum 

has continued to buy assets. In 2015 it bought Everest South from 

Aquarius, a move that will allow it to consolidate operations with 

its adjacent property, Booysendal South. Northam, which also has 

assets in the North West province, aims to produce 850 000oz of 

PMGs from 2022. 

A court ruling in February 2017 has opened the way for Ivanhoe 

to build its Platreef Project on the northern limb of the Bushveld 

Igneous Complex. Local communities objected to the proposed 

multi-billion project because it was said the mine would cause 

ancestral graves to be moved. R70-million has been commited to 

the first phase. 

In July, Ivanhoe released a feasibility study that was positive about 

prospects for mining for platinum group elements, nickel, copper 

and gold. Ivanplats, the subsidiary of the Canadian company, will 

run the mine in the Waterberg District Municipality near Mokopane 

south-west of Polokwane. Ivanhoe has a 64% stake in Ivanplats with 

10% owned by a group of Japanese companies including ITOCHU 

Corporation and Japan Gas Corporation. 

If the mine achieves the projected production rate of 12 Mtpa 

with 1.2-million ounces of PGM, it will rank as the biggest mine in 

the world. Engineering companies engaged in the project include 

FLSmidth (winding equipment), Aveng (shaft one) and Murray & 

Roberts (shaft two). 


OVERVIEW 

Coal 

Limpopo contributes 4% of coal mining in South Africa, according to 

the National Department of Mineral Resources, but it seems likely that 

within the next three decades, the province will be supplying about 

half of South Africa’s coal. Limpopo’s Waterberg coal field is estimated 

to contain about 75-billion tons of coal. 

Supplying coal to power-producer Eskom has for many 

years been part of the bread-and-butter income for coal mining 

operators. In 2015, Exxaro supplied Eskom with nearly 

30% of the coal it needed to run its power stations, about 

33-million tons of coal. 

Exxaro spent several billion rand expanding its Grootgeluk mine 

(which has 3 200 employees) in the expectation that it would supply 

coal to Eskom’s Medupi power station. However, construction of the 

giant power station has been severely delayed, with the result that 

Exxaro is now having to look to export its coal. The plan was for the 

mine to supply Medupi with 14.6-million tons of coal every year for 40 

years. Exxaro is exploring new technologies at Lephalale, working on 

the possibilities of Underground Coal Gasification (UCG). 

The diversified resources company recently launched the New 

Exxaro Tomorrow (NXXT) programme, which is part of the company’s 

2030 vision that has a strong focus on sustainability. 

Sibanye Gold has acquired a 51% stake in Waterberg Coal, 

further evidence that it intends looking after its own power 

supply, at least to some extent. 

Coal of Africa is active in Limpopo, with the Vele colliery (coking and 

thermal) in the far north of the province and the Greater Soutpansberg 

Project /MbeuYashu, which includes CoAL’s Makhado Project (coking 

and thermal coal). 

Diamonds 

Anglo American is investing R2-billion to expand production at 

its diamond mine near the town of Musina. Venetia Mine is by far 


Chamber of Mines of South Africa: www.bullion.org.za 

Geological Society of South Africa: www.gssa.org.za 

Mining Qualifications Authority (MQA): www.mqa.org.za 

National Department of Mineral Resources: www.dme.gov.za 

South African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: 

www.saimm.co.za 

the most important part of De 

Beers’ South African operation, 

accounting for 3.1-million of 

the 5.4-million carats recovered 

by the company from its six 

operations. 

Good progress is being made 

to convert the mine from an 

open-pit mine to an underground 

operation, a project that will extend 

the life of the mine to the 

middle of the 2040s. The project 

will employ more than 2 000 people 

at its peak period. The first 

diamonds to come from the new 

mine are expected in 2021 with 

the underground mine becoming 

the only source of diamonds 

in 2023. 

The Venetia mine is also the 

site of some ground-breaking 

research that the De Beers group 

is putting in to finding ways to 

store carbon by mineralising 

kimberlite tailings. It is thought 

that kimberlite has the potential 

to be carbonised and thus able to 

store carbon. The goal is carbonneutral 

mining. 


48

INTERVIEW 

Localisation brings 

business opportunities 

Benford Mokoatle, Venetia Mine General Manager, details 

how new policies are creating jobs in the Musina area. 

Benford Mokoatle 

Will the underground mine project affect production levels? 

When you go underground you reduce waste but the ore mined will 

remain constant, if not marginally improve. The carats will marginally 

improve from the current production profile. 

What plans do you have to transition your workforce to 

the underground environment? 

The skills required for the underground operation will be completely 

different from the current skill levels and requirements. We can 

accommodate those who have an aspiration of going underground 

by retraining them. 

BIOGRAPHY 

Benford Mokoatle has 21 years 

of mining experience. He began 

his professional career in 

the Wits Basin and spent time 

in West Wits (Western Deep 

Levels and East Mine), the 

Free State (Tshepong Mine) 

and Vaal Reefs before joining 

De Beers. He has worked at 

Kimberley Mines, Oaks Mine, 

Voorspoed Mine and Venetia 

Mine. At Venetia Mine, Benford 

is responsible for leading and 

directing Venetia Mine and its 

leadership team. 

Does the investment in Venetia underground mine signify 

investor confidence? 

I have no doubt about that. This is a project of a minimum of 

US$2-billion. This shows that the investors have confidence first and 

foremost in the country, and secondly in the project itself. It also says 

that there is still a market in diamond sales. 

Does the mine impact on socio-economic development? 

In our region, for every employee that is employed there’s indirectly 

10 people that benefit. We are on a drive to localise businesses and 

suppliers that we do business with. We will continue to create partnerships 

and invest in the local economy. 

Are local companies benefitting? 

When we started with the BEE drive we needed to be doing business 

with empowered or black-owned suppliers. Now that we are at 88% or 

90% BEE credentials, we need to localise and do business with entities 

that originate from our labour-sending area. So far we have rolled out 

about 35 local business opportunities, 50 to 60% of those are sourced 

from our labour-sending areas such as Musina and Blouberg. 


INTERVIEW 

New shaft sinking 

method prioritises 

safety 

Head of De Beers Venetia Underground Project, 

Christoff Kühn, reports on progress in one of 

Limpopo’s biggest projects. 

Christoff Kühn 

BIOGRAPHY 

Christoffel Kühn has Master's 

degrees in mechanical engineering 

and project management 

from the universities of 

Potchefstroom and Pretoria 

which he has put into practice 

in Southern Africa, South 

America and Australia. Starting 

as an engineer on a gold mine, 

he has since delivered several 

capital projects in the mining industry. 

His experience includes 

engineering and project management, 

project development 

and techno-economic evaluation. 

Kühn’s previous post 

was head of the project management 

support and review 

department at Anglo American. 

What is the scope of De Beers’ investment into the 

Venetia Underground Project? 

We committed US$2-billion in replacing the open mine with a new 

underground mine. This will approximately double the life of the 

mine to the middle of the 2040s. 

When do you expect to start producing diamonds? 

We start intersecting the kimberlite orebodies in the 2020s. The first 

significant production will be in 2021, on a smaller component of 

the mine. The open pit will halt all operation in 2023 and from then 

on, the underground will become the main source. The open pit is 

currently mining three distinct kimberlite pipes. The underground 

mine will mine two of those. 

How many jobs have been created? 

We have about 750 people on the project. At our peak, the numbers 

will increase to about 2 000 to 2 500 people – these will decrease as 

the project execution comes to an end. 

The underground mine will not significantly change the number 

of De Beers’ employees on the mine, although there might be different 

contractors that are required on the underground operation 

from those we used on the open pit because of the changed nature 

of the mining. 

We forecast that we will stay at similar employment levels as before. 

We currently have approximately 1 350 employees, excluding contractors. 

The situation with contractors is very dynamic, and changes 

as workload alters. It is not consistent work over the life of the mine. 

Are local businesses involved? 

Some portions of the project are unique, and require established 

experienced contractors to deliver. We have gone on a campaign 

to try to build to establish as many local SMMEs as possible. There 

are a few success stories, such as our partnership with a company 


50

INTERVIEW 

IMAGES COURTESY OF DE BEERS VENETIA MINE 

called Renuna for accommodation. Smaller local 

building contractors are also helping us to develop 

structures on site. 

How long is the tunnel from the surface to 

the mine? 

We are developing three access points. The decline is 

2.5km and the vertical depth is about 400m. The decline 

assists with developing the top of the mine. The 

decline will be completed this month and we have 

started with lateral development towards ore bodies. 

The two vertical shafts, which are about 550m 

below the surface, will eventually be 1km in depth. 

At what speed are the vertical shafts 

being developed? 

We are currently achieving approximately 40-45m 

per month. 

What are some of the key challenges you 

face in this project? 

Some of the key challenges we have is obtaining 

specialist skills required for shaft sinking. We are 

competing with a project in Mongolia and one in 

Zambia. Obtaining the correct skills set within the SA 

environment is tricky, including the skills set 

that we require for the operational phase of the 

underground mine. 

Are there any new techniques being used 

on the project? 

The shaft sinking methodology we are employing 

through Murry & Roberts is the first of its kind in 

South Africa. We awarded it to Murray & Roberts 

based on the safety associated with its method. 

The old method did concrete lining concurrently 

with development. We do everything in line, making 

sure we don’t expose people to people working 

on top of them. This affects the advance rate, 

but it is a significantly safer method. 

From a safety record perspective, we are doing 

well compared to other similar projects in SA. 

Shaft sinking is typically associated with severe 

accidents. While we have not yet achieved our goal 

of zero harm, we have progressed significantly on 

our journey. 


FOCUS 

De Beers Venetia Mine 

Community Development 

A partner in poverty alleviation and job creation. 

Venetia Mine lies approximately 80km west of Musina and 

36km north-east of Alldays in the Limpopo Province. The 

mine is located in the Musina Local Municipality of the Vhembe 

District, off the R521 road between Alldays and Pondrift, 

approximately 540km north of Johannesburg. The majority of the mine 

employees are from the Blouberg and Musina municipalities, which 

are therefore its primary labour sending areas. 

A total of 40% of the workforce comes from Musina while 21% of the 

workers come from Blouberg, with a further 15% coming from other 

parts of Limpopo and the balance from further afield. 

The Mine Community Development Programme for Venetia Mine 

is based on De Beers Consolidated Mine’s Community Development 

strategy and the Venetia Mine Socio-Economic Assessment, which 

focused on the possible impacts that Venetia Mine would have on the 

communities of Vhembe and Capricorn District Municipalities, and 

more specifically the two host municipal areas, Blouberg and Musina. 

The programme is integrated 

with the Integrated Development 

Plans (IDPs) of the Blouberg and 

Musina municipalities and demonstrates 

a commitment to the 

sustainable upliftment of these 

communities. 

The legacy of Venetia Mine 

will stretch over and above the 

direct economic benefits that 

the mine will bring to the region. 

Venetia Mine aims to become 

fully integrated within the local 

communities and to be a partner 

in poverty alleviation and job 

creation. 

PROJECT NAME AREA BUDGET ACTUAL STATUS 

Limpopo Rural Schools Programme Blouberg R3 000 000 R5 488 432 Completed 

Student Financial Aid Scheme 

Maths and Science Programme 

Enterprise Development Zimele 

Musina and 

Blouberg 

Musina and 

Blouberg 

Musina and 

Blouberg 

R300 000 R245 723 Completed 

R300 000 R257 700 Completed 

R400 000 R1 058 827.13 Completed 

Teacher Subvention Musina R1 800 000 R3 028 478 Completed 

Building Materials Project Musina R600 000 R222 300 Completed 

Ventilation Pipes Project Blouberg R600 000 R159 600 Completed 

TOTAL R 9 000 000 R 10 461 060.13 

VENETIA MINE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS (2016) 

NB: OVER AND ABOVE THE PROJECTS LISTED IN THE TABLE ABOVE, DE BEERS VENETIA MINE ALSO ASSISTED BLOUBERG MUNICIPALITY 

WITH THE GRADING OF COMMUNITY ROADS IN THE TAAIBOSCHGROET AREA AT A TOTAL COST OF R32 429. 


52

Limpopo Rural Schools 

Programme 

De Beers Venetia Mine has entered 

into a ground-breaking 

partnership with the Limpopo 

Department of Education, 

through the Limpopo Education 

Trust, to provide infrastructure to 

needy schools within the Venetia 

Mine labour sending areas. Both 

partners contributed R3-million 

each towards schools that were 

jointly identified. Since its inception 

in 2006, this partnership has 

resulted in 13 schools around 

Musina and Blouberg areas 

being supported. 

The latest project under this 

partnership was the construction 

of Mphengwa Secondary School 

in Eldorado Village in Blouberg. 

The project started in March 2016 

and was completed in December 

2016. The scope of this project 

included the building of 12 new 

classrooms, an administration 

block, provision of water and 

fencing at the school. Prior to this 

intervention, the situation at the 

school was dire, with infrastructure 

that was dilapidated and on the 

verge of collapse. 

FOCUS 

located in Venetia Mine’s labour sending communities of Blouberg or 

Musina, they must be academically deserving and/or be dependants 

of Venetia Mine employees that are in the bargaining unit category. A 

learner must be registered with a public tertiary institution. 

Maths and Science Programme 

Venetia Mine introduced a Mathematics and Science Programme to 

support learners in the Musina and Blouberg areas. In 2016, the focus 

of this programme was on Grade 12 learners from 10 high schools to 

help them improve their pass rate in these subjects. In 2016, De Beers 

Venetia Mine partnered with the University of Venda (UNIVEN). A total 

of 282 learners benefitted from this insightful programme. The partnership 

with UNIVEN started in 2016, and has seen the Maths and Physical 

Science Grade 12 results in the Bahananwa Circuit improve by 3% in 2016. 

Enterprise Development Zimele 

The Blouberg and Musina Local Municipalities have agreed to support all 

their future entrepreneurial projects through the De Beers Zimele Venetia 

Mine Business Hub. The hub aims to create sustainable jobs by providing 

low-interest business loans paired with significant mentorship, coaching 

and skills development for small to medium-sized enterprises (SMMEs). 

Since its establishment it has created over 495 jobs in the community. 

Teacher Subvention 

The primary objective for this programme is to provide local schools in 

the Musina area with funding for them to employ additional educators 

and administration personnel. Schools currently benefitting are Musina 

High School, Eric Louw High School and Messina Primary School. Many 

of Venetia Mine employees’ children are enrolled at these schools. 

Student Financial Aid 

Scheme 

This scheme provides learners 

with educational grants of up to a 

maximum of R15 000 per student, 

per annum, towards their tuition 

fees. This amount is paid directly 

into the tertiary institution’s account. 

For learners to qualify for 

this grant they must come from 

a financially destitute family 


FOCUS 

De Beers Venetia Mine Economic 

Development and Procurement 

At the heart of building local businesses. 

De Beers Venetia Mine is adopting a multi-faceted approach 

to supporting and incubating local businesses. From partnerships 

with agencies and business development training 

programmes and joint ventures, the mining company is 

working to ensure that economic development and job creation 

become a reality for the wider community of businesses and entrepreneurs 

in which the mine operates. 

The company’s goal is to incubate 50 local businesses in 2017 and 

to continue on that trajectory into 2018 and 2019. A partnership with 

the Small Enterprise Development Agency (Seda) has already paid 

off in the sense that detailed training sessions are empowering local 

business people. One such participant, Buto Tabengwa from Musinabased 

B-Graphics and IT Solutions, reported, “The training has been 

mind-blowing. This group has certainly been empowered through the 

knowledge they have downloaded – well done to De Beers for putting 

local business on the map.” Topics dealt with in training included costing 

and pricing, access to funding and banking as well as joint ventures 

and cash-flow management. Gregory Petersen, De Beers Consolidated 

Mines Supplier and Enterprise Development Manager, explains the 

rationale, “By collaborating with industry leaders such as Seda we 

maximise the impacts of our Enterprise Development Programme 

and deliver smart, meaningful services to local companies which, 

with coaching and support, could 

become suppliers to Venetia Mine 

in the future.” 

Addressing a Business 

Breakfast at the Diamond Club 

in March 2017, Venetia Mine 

Assistant General Manager, 

Hendrick Matjila, discussed local 

procurement as well as supplier 

and enterprise development 

strategies. “Business cannot exist 

in isolation,” he said. “At Venetia 

Mine we are cognisant of the fact 

that we cannot sustain our operation 

without ploughing back in 

our communities. We know that if 

we are to achieve our goal of leaving 

a lasting legacy beyond the 

life of Venetia Mine, it starts with 

supporting local enterprises and 

developing our entrepreneurs 

and small businesses.” 


54

FOCUS 

Guests, who included members 

of the Musina Business 

Chamber and Musina Local 

Municipality, representatives of 

the Beitbridge and Zoutpansburg 

Chambers of Commerce and the 

Musina Youth in Business Forum, 

discussed collective ways to turn 

Musina around together. 

Strategy 

Venetia Mine’s procurement team 

has successfully completed the 

following initiatives in recent 

months: 

De Beers community fair: 

Crowds of local business people 

and entrepreneurs visited 

the Supplier Development and 

Zimele exhibits, giving them an 

opportunity to understand the 

requirements for doing business 

with Venetia. 

Community SMS database: The 

Community Fair creates the opportunity 

to build a database of 

over 100 potential suppliers in 

Musina and Blouberg who the 

mine can now communicate 

with directly regarding business 

opportunities. 

Opportunities specifically 

targeting local business: HDSAowned 

entities are sought which 

can provide products and services 

such as supplying kitchen 

consumables, electric fencing, 

rodent and pest control, manpower 

required during shutdowns 

and emergency repairs 

and ad hoc work in the treatment 

plant, repairs on tyre protection 

chains, cleaning services and alien 

plant control. 

Community-focussed marketing 

strategy: A comprehensive 

campaign has been launched on local radio stations Mohodi FM 

and Musina FM, local newspapers such as the Polokwane Observer 

and the Northern Gazette and on posters at local municipalities, 

tribal offices as well as public areas such as post offices. 

Supplier Development Programme 

At the end of the second quarter of 2017, a total of 226 local businesses 

had expressed their interest in being involved through the 

mine’s Local Procurement Drive. Of these, 58 companies were 

shortlisted and fifteen local companies were awarded contracts, 

with another seven to follow shortly afterwards. 

Thirty-seven of the targeted 50 opportunities had already been 

launched by July, and a further seven were due to be rolled out in 

the third quarter. The focus for these vendor opportunities is in: 

• road maintenance and construction 

• repairs to bund walls 

• cleaning at the Venetia Primary Crusher 

• Venetia Mine takeaway canteen 

• supply of LDV tyres, batteries and rims 

• small civil works at Venetia Underground Project 

• construction of the HTTS building at Venetia Underground 

Project. 

Six local companies have an established relationship with 

the Venetia Mine and they are already enrolled in the Supplier 

Development Programme. As companies win contracts, they are 

added to the programme. Entrepreneurs or companies who have 

been unsuccessful in application or in tendering are encouraged to 

participate in the De Beers Incubator or other initiatives. The Seda 

programme is an example of such a support programme. 

Bussing Empowerment Deal 

The Venetia Mine and VM Diamond Transport have called for locally 

owned businesses in the Musina area to put their names forward 

to be 40% shareholders in bus companies covering the Musina and 

Blouberg areas. An empowerment initiative aimed at Historically 

Disadvantaged South Africans (HDSA), the plan is for an eight-year 

contract to transport workers to the mine at the centre of a share 

purchase agreement. Technical training will be provided by VM 

Diamond Transport as part of a two-year business development 

programme and the local partners are expected to become majority 

shareholders within a five-year period. 

Similar opportunities in the broader transport sector include a 

partnership with Bridgestone, Global Wheel and Willard to establish 

a locally owned distribution centre for tyres, rims and batteries that 

will service Venetia Mine and the wider community. 


PROFILE 

Unlocking opportunity 

Ivanplats brings a new dawn to Mokopane. 

Ivanplats is developing a world-class underground 

platinum-group elements, nickel, copper and gold 

mine in Mokopane, Limpopo. The company plans 

to use highly mechanised methods to mine the 

deposit. 

Ivanplats’ Managing Director, Dr Patricia Makhesha, 

says: “We are proud to have shared our almost 20 

years of exploration and development achievements 

at Platreef with supportive stakeholders. 

These stakeholders, including more than 150 000 

local Mokopane area residents, see international 

investment and professionally managed development 

of natural resources as keys to unlock widely 

shared opportunities and prosperity.” 

The Platreef mine is projected to require a workforce 

of approximately 2 200 within four years of 

the start of production operations and Ivanplats 

will have invested a total of R160-million in the 

Platreef social and labour plan from 2014 to 2019. 

The approved plan includes R67.2-million for the 

development of job skills among local residents 

and R87.7-million for local economic development 

projects. 

“In establishing our social and labour plan, Ivanplats 

has been mindful of the South African government’s 

National Development Plan and its priority 

of securing undertakings that create jobs and 

advance socio-economic development to alleviate 

poverty and unemployment,” says Dr Makhesha. 

“The social and labour plan programmes that we 

are currently implementing demonstrate Ivanplats’ 

commitment to ensuring that people in our 

host communities benefit from our operations, 

directly and indirectly, in ways that contribute to 

improving their quality of life and expanding their 

opportunities.” 

The year 2017 was tagged by Ivanplats as “The Year of the 

Youth” and the company focused on bringing information 

and connectivity to the people in its host communities. The 

project, called Maru a Mokopane (Sepedi for the Clouds 

of Mokopane), saw the installation of eight free Wi-Fi 

hotspots in Ivanplats’ host communities, the development 

of an online communication portal and the creation of 17 

micro digital enterprises that are responsible for training 

people in how to use this free system. One of the digital 

trainers, Pitso Oupa Zono, is training a resident at Tshamahansi 

Wi-Fi hotspot on how to use Maru a Mokopane. 

Mrs Lizzie Seema from Sekgoboko was 

one of the participants in a non-core 

training programme Ivanplats initiated. 

She completed the electrical training 

module sponsored by Ivanplats and 

started an electrical business focusing 

on tubing and wiring of houses with the 

support of her trainer. 


56

Developing a world-class highly mechanised, underground 

platinum-group elements, nickel, copper and gold mine in Mokopane. 

Bringing socio-economic development to 

Mogalakwena Municipality, Limpopo and beyond.

FOCUS 

Efficient mining at Lephalale 

Grootegeluk mine: A world leader in more than one way. 

Exxaro Resources Limited is one of the largest 

South Africa-based diversified resources 

groups with interests in the coal, titanium 

dioxide, ferrous and energy markets. It 

is the second-largest coal producer in South Africa, 

with current production of close to 44-million 

tonnes per annum, and is listed on the JSE Limited, 

where it is a constituent of the Socially Responsible 

Investment indices. 

Exxaro’s flagship mine, Grootegeluk, is situated in 

Lephalale, Limpopo province. It is among the most 

efficient mining operations in the world, and operates 

the world’s largest coal beneficiation complex 

from a single pit with mineable reserves of more 

than 30 years. Products include thermal, metallurgical 

and semi-soft coking coal. More than 80% of the 

coal produced is distributed to the nearby Matimba 

and Medupi power stations. 

Grootegeluk is committed to ensuring a safe 

and healthy workplace through Exxaro’s sustainability 

vision of Zero Harm and has seen a decline 

in all incident frequencies over the past five years 

and the emergence of world-class safety statistics. 

Grootegeluk has maintained its ISO and OHSAS 

certification for the past 10 years and has not 

experienced a fatality since 2012. 

On the environmental front, Grootegeluk is in 

possession of all required authorisations to operate 

and strives to fully implement the conditions relating 

to these licences. Operating in a water-scarce area 

like the Limpopo province also poses some challenges 

and Grootegeluk is continuously striving to 

actively and innovatively reuse the water inside the 

mine’s reticulation system, thereby contributing to 

the conservation and demand management of the 

water in the Mokolo catchment. 


58

IT’S ALL ABOUT DOING WELL AND GOOD. 

EXX_20170222 

At Exxaro, we know that if our goal is significant growth, it means achieving that goal through 

operational excellence. If one objective is to grow to become a significant company and generate 

returns above the cost of capital, it also means implementing a well developed strategy. If leveraging 

innovation and technologies is part of our vision, it means making a valuable economic contribution 

for the benefit of all our stakeholders. For us the power of good business means leadership, and the 

possibilities in leadership mean good business. We look at both sides of the coin.

FOCUS 

Maximising benefits for 

local communities 

Marula is one of the first operations to have been developed on the relatively 

under-exploited eastern limb of the Bushveld Complex in South Africa. The mine 

is located in the Limpopo province, some 50 kilometres north of Burgersfort. 

Marula’s partners together own 27% of the company. Each of the 

following parties hold a 9% stake in the business: 

• The Marula Community Trust, ensuring sustainable benefit flows 

to the local community; 

• Tubatse Platinum, a broad-based HDSA empowerment consortium 

from local business; and 

• Mmakau Mining, an established mining entity. 

Implats, as the largest stakeholder, brings technical, managerial, 

financial and operational expertise to the mine. 

The pursuit of sustainable development and zero harm are seen as 

imperatives. Marula focuses on addressing those social, economic and 

environmental issues that are seen as having a material impact on the 

business, the sustainability of the economy, the environment and the 

communities in which it operates. 

Marula is determined to maximise the benefits of the mine for 

its local communities and the social investment strategy focuses on 

addressing the urgent needs identified in these areas. Preference 

is given to local contractors and suppliers of goods and services. In 

addition, Makgoma Chrome, a 

joint venture that assists local communities 

with the extraction and 

marketing of chrome from tailings, 

has realised substantial financial 

and other benefits for these 

communities. 

CONTACT INFO 

Group Corporate Relations 

Manager: Alice Lourens, 

Tel: +27 11 731 9033 

E-mail: alice.lourens@ 

implats.co.za 


60

OVERVIEW 

Energy 

An energy complex is planned for Lephalale. 

One of South Africa’s biggest engineering projects is under 

way in the western part of Limpopo, the building of the 

Medupi power station. The facility is being built near the 

existing Matimba power station and the giant Exxaro coal 

mine at Grootgeluk. 

Unit 5 of Medupi Power Station has achieved commercial operation 

status, joining Unit 6 in supplying 800MW to the national grid. When 

the Medupi power plant is completed, the Lephalale area will become 

a petrochemical hub and energy complex. 

An Integrated Energy Centre (IEC) has been launched in the 

Fetakgomo-Greater Tubatse Municipality. Energy company Shell SA 

has invested R18-million in the community centre, which has created 

16 jobs. IECs, an initiative of the national Department of Energy (DoE), 

are one-stop energy shops that assists local residents in getting access 

to energy and providing information on energy resources. 

The national Department of Energy’s Renewable Energy 

Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (REIPPPP) has 

been very successful so far. Three photovoltaic solar projects located 

in Limpopo will generate 118MW at full capacity. 

Most approved projects have been solar and wind. Now planners 

want to promote projects using biogas, landfill gas and small-scale 

hydro-electric. 

The provincial government’s Green Economy Plan has identified 

solar and biomass as the main kinds of renewable energy for Limpopo. 

Energy generation is not the only component of the plan: with huge 

silicon reserves in the province, there is potential to produce solar 

panels and solar charges for cellphones. 


National Department of Energy: www.energy.gov.za 

South African Photovoltaic Industry Association: 

www.sapvia.co.za 

South African Wind Energy Association: www.sawea.org.za 

Southern African Biofuels Association: www.saba.za.org 

Sustainable Energy Africa: www.sustainable.org.za 


Solar and biomass hold great 

potential in Limpopo. 

Nine biogas digesters have 

been installed in the Vhembe 

District to be controlled by 

young entrepreneurs trained by 

the University of Venda. A group 

of 31 students is studying Energy 

Management Systems as part of 

the provincial plan. 

The mining and agricultural 

sectors are the two biggest and 

most important sectors of the 

Limpopo provincial economy. 

They are big consumers of energy 

and they hold the key to advancing 

alternate technologies. 

Implats recently negotiated 

the supply of natural gas supply to 

its refinery in Springs. Phase one 

of the project will see 20 Doosan 

fuel cells generating 8MW of 

power. The long-term goal is to 

generate 22-30MW. 

Anglo Platinum has launched 

an underground mining locomotive 

powered by a fuel cell. 

Platinum coating greatly enhances 

the hydrogen absorption 

capacity of fuel cells. 

Mining group Exxaro is sponsoring 

the rollout of alternative energy 

near its remote Tshikondeni 

mine east of Musina. 


62

Water 

Major bulk water projects are under way. 

OVERVIEW 

Several major projects are currently being carried out in 

Limpopo, including bulk water schemes at Mooihoek/ 

Tubatse, Sekhukhune and Moutse. 

The completion of the De Hoop Dam has made possible 

the provision of water to many communities in the eastern part of 

Limpopo. The building of the dam is part of the greater Olifants River 

Water Resources Development Project. Five other water projects and 

65 associated schemes in the Sekhukhune District are delivering other 

water infrastructure, including pipes to get water to Moutse from the 

Loskop Dam. 

In the 2017/18 financial year, the provincial government has committed 

to providing 210 more schools with potable drinking water and 

185 more schools with decent sanitation facilities. 

The mining and agriculture sectors are heavily dependent on a 

steady and sustainable supply of water. 

Several Limpopo towns have struggled to supply clean water to 

residents, and this has led to tension between residents and municipal 

officials. In response, the national Minister of Public Works has put 

together a technical team to support the municipalities. 

Limpopo has very different rainfall patterns in its three main geographical 

regions: the escarpment (sub-humid with annual rainfall of 

more than 700mm); semi-arid middle veld and Highveld; and the arid 

and semi-arid Lowveld. The long drought that affected many parts of 

South Africa had a big impact in Limpopo. The provincial government 

declared a disaster in November 2015 and released funds to supply 

feed for livestock. By early 2017 the drought was broken in northern 

areas such as Limpopo. 



and Tourism: www.ledet.gov.za 

National Department of Water and Sanitation: www.dwa.gov.za 

Olifants River Forum: www.orf.co.za 

South African Association of Water Utilities: www.saawu.co.za 

Water Institute of South Africa: www.wisa.org.za 


Potable water will be 

delivered to 210 schools. 

The province’s rivers are under 

threat from the damaging effects 

of the mining industry, power stations, 

chemicals used in agriculture 

and from sewage treatment 

in catchment areas. Opportunities 

exist in this sector for innovative 

solutions. 

The Water and Sanitation 

Services branch of Polokwane 

Municipality operates five waterpurification 

plants and three 

sewage-purification plants. As 

part of its Regional Water Scheme 

programme, Polokwane provides 

water to the residents of the rural 

areas of Mothapo, Mothiba and 

Makotopong. A reservoir has 

been built and new pipes laid. 

The Capricorn District 

Municipality funds a water-testing 

laboratory on the campus of the 

University of Limpopo. Mocha Lab 

has been operating in Polokwane 

since 2008, and has the capability 

to provide services to the mining 

and engineering sector, as well as 

to water authorities. 


OVERVIEW 

Transport and logistics 

Limpopo’s location makes it ideal for logistics operations. 


Polokwane is investing in a 

bus rapid transport system. 

• The N1 and N11 highways 

link South Africa to its 

neighbours. 

The N1 highway, “The Road to the North” is an extremely busy road 

and growing mining operations are putting pressure on secondary 

routes in the province. In this context, Transnet Freight Rail’s 

stated aim of getting larger quantities of freight moved from road 

back to rail is good news for everyone. 

A similar theme is behind the bus rapid transport system being 

introduced in the provincial capital, Polokwane, except here the goal 

is to get commuters into public busses. The scheme is called Leeto la 

Polokwane. Within the province more broadly, 22.6% of households 

in Limpopo use bus transport and 45.8% use taxis (2013 Household 

Travel Survey). 

Increasing rail volumes out of the coal-rich Waterberg area is something 

that has been on the cards for some time but this project may 

have to wait until commodity prices recover. Transnet Freight Rail (TFR) 

is conducting a feasibility study. An extension of 464km would cost 

about R37-billion, so TFR may look for private partners. If more coal 

mines are developed, then capacity could be ramped up in stages. 

All of this would be delivered to Richards Bay via the line through 

Mpumalanga and KwaZulu-Natal. Eskom’s huge new power station in 

western Limpopo (Medupi) will need lots of coal but is experiencing 

long delays in construction. 

Logistics is a vital feature of the Limpopo economy for two reasons 

– the province has huge volumes of raw produce to be transported to 

markets elsewhere, and the province 

is strategically positioned. In 

addition to the N1 highway, the 

N11 is a primary road corridor 

and there are nine provincial 

road corridors. 

Freight volumes on the N11 

(to Botswana and Mpumalanga) 

have increased markedly since 

2006, whereas the R33 has carried 

less traffic. 

South Africa’s major logistics 

companies have facilities in 

Polokwane, and some have warehouses 

and forwarding facilities in 

other parts of the province. RTT 

has offices in Makhado. Limpopo’s 

biggest exports (minerals and fruit 

and vegetables) require dramatically 

different levels of handling. 

Minerals are poured in great volumes 

into the freight trucks of TFR 

and taken onward to Richards Bay 

Coal Terminal, whereas some of 

the province’s fruits like avocadoes 

have to be handled with 

extreme care. They must be delivered 

to ports as quickly as possible 

as they are delicate and the 


64

OVERVIEW 

deadlines for getting fruit to market 

in Europe are tight. Companies 

such as Freezerlines, Fast ‘n Fresh 

and Cold Chain have developed 

specialist techniques in getting 

these fruits to market and to 

port undamaged. Grindrod has a 

Perishable Cargo division which 

specialises in transporting cargo 

by air. 

The large national logistics 

company Value Group has only 

four major regional depots 

outside of Gauteng: in Cape 

Town, Durban, Nelspruit – and 

Polokwane. This illustrates the 

importance of the Limpopo 

Province and its capital city in the 

national logistics chain. 

Imperial Logistics Southern 

Africa has 70 companies in its 

group structure, including Kobus 

Minaar Transport, a concern that 

began in Tzaneen transporting 

fruit and vegetables. Other active 

companies in Limpopo include 

Dawn Wing Logistics, Kargo, F&R 

Logistics and Aramex SA. 

Outside of Polokwane, the 

towns of Tzaneen, Lephalale, 

Burgersfort and Musina (a border 

post with Zimbabwe) are all important 

in the field of logistics. 

Roads Agency Limpopo (RAL), 

of which the provincial government 

is the sole shareholder, 

accounts for about a third of 

the budget of the Limpopo 

Department of Public Works, 

Roads and Infrastructure. 

The provincial government 

has a scheme whereby pupils in 

rural areas up to 10km away from 

schools are provided with bicycles. 

The province’s scholar transport 

network will be expanded in 

the course of 2017 to 255 schools. 

Great North Transport falls under the Limpopo Economic 

Development Agency. The company has more than 500 buses, covers 

about 37.6-million kilometres every year on 279 routes, employs more 

than 1 200 people and transports 37.6-million passengers. 

Air 

The Polokwane International Airport (PIA) is wholly owned by the 

provincial government and run by the Gateway Airport Authority Ltd 

(GAAL), an agency of the Limpopo Department of Roads and Transport. 

It has the potential to be an important regional cargo airport. 

SA Airlink caters mainly to the business market and offers 21 flights 

to Johannesburg six days a week. The airline also provides links between 

Phalaborwa and Johannesburg, and between Hoedspruit and 

Johannesburg and Cape Town. 

Many game reserves have airstrips, and regional airports in the 

eastern part of the province provide easy access to the Kruger National 

Park. Hoedspruit Airport is situated within an airforce base and has the 

second-longest runway in South Africa, long enough to serve as an 

emergency landing area for space shuttles. The airport is served by SA 

Express. Phalaborwa’s airport is notable for its African-themed terminal 

which includes a zebra-patterned floor. Musina, near the border with 

Zimbabwe in the north, hosts the province’s other regional airport. 


Gateway Airport Authority Limpopo: www.gaal.co.za 

Hoedspruit Airport: www.eastgateairport.co.za 

Limpopo Department of Transport: www.ldot.gov.za 

Limpopo Economic Development Agency (LEDA): www.lieda.co.za 

Railroad Association of South Africa: www.rra.co.za 

Roads Agency Limpopo: www.ral.co.za 

South African National Roads Agency Limited: www.sanral.co.za 

Transnet Freight Rail: www.transnet.net 


PROFILE 

Leeto: Our journey to 

seamless mobility 

Building a better city. 

By Musa Ndlangamandla 

Seamless, smart and sustainable urban mobility that 

ensures the quick and free movement of people, 

goods and services while reducing pollution, traffic 

and accidents. This has become a major priority for 

the future growth of cities around the world. 

For the City of Polokwane, an efficient and costeffective 

public transport system which connects 

people to jobs, education, recreational facilities 

and public services is a fundamental part of human 

development. That is why Polokwane Local 

Municipality has pulled out all the stops and is 

making great progress in the implementation of 

the ground-breaking Leeto la Polokwane project, 

which will provide its citizens with a safer, faster, 

affordable, efficient and environmentally friendly 

public transport service. The name, which means 

the Journey of Polokwane, derives from the SePedi 

language and is symbolic of the collective journey 

of the people of Polokwane. 

Leeto la Polokwane is making a positive impact on 

the city’s socio-economic development, through 

upgrades in public physical infrastructure within a 

well-planned spatial context. The project has also 

ensured sustainable job creation while ushering in 

a clean, green, safe and healthy city. Such improvements 

have a positive impact in promoting local 

businesses and stimulating investments. 

Historical Background 

A brief historical background would help unpack 

the milestones of this project which have been 

realised over the last five years and give context 

Polokwane Municipality Executive, Mayor Cllr Thembi 

Nkadimeng on the occassion of Leeto la Polokwane 

system name launch. 

to Polokwane Local Municipality’s efforts towards 

creating a city where people and community come 

first. Polokwane is among 13 cities identified by 

government to introduce an Integrated Rapid Public 

Transport System (IRPTS). This is aligned with the 

objectives of the National Transport Action Plan, 

incorporating South Africa’s Public Transport 

Strategy, which was approved by Cabinet in 2007. 

Leeto la Polokwane is funded in tranches through 

the Public Transport Network Grant (PTNG) and integrates 

Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) with non-motorised 

transport, progressive land use approaches, and 

car-restriction interventions. It is implemented in 

phases and operates on fully or partly dedicated 

roads and feeder routes that connect with existing 

networks of minibus taxis, buses, walkways and cycling 

lanes. Over the past 10 years, National Treasury 

has contributed R167-billion towards infrastructure 

and operations subsidies, with an average annual 


66

PROFILE 

growth of 18%. Due to economic challenges which 

have had a negative impact on funding, the operational 

plan for Phases One and Two of Leeto 

la Polokwane was revised to deliver on quality, 

while reducing the financial deficit to Polokwane 

Local Municipality. 

The interim phase is to be operated by the Vehicle 

Operating Company inclusive of the four affected 

taxi associations (Seshego-Polokwane, Moletjie, 

Westenburg and Flora Park). 

Go-Live targets 

As the clock ticks towards the Go-Live phase of the 

project, the Polokwane Transportation Directorate 

has come a long way in meeting the standards and 

requirements outlined by the national Department 

of Transport (DoT). 

Construction work on the initial stage of Leeto 

la Polokwane is progressing well and the project 

will ultimately include about 50 kilometres of 

road construction and improvements. This entails 

trunk and feeder routes. Presently, 2.5km of 

dedicated lanes have been completed, with 1.5km 

under way. Trunk extension rehabilitation and 

upgrades are also progressing well with 13.8km 

having been completed. There has also been tangible 

progress in the rehabilitation of the central 

Ms Anza Ligege, Young Professional in Transportation. 

business district (CBD) routes. To that end, 32.6km has 

been completed. Such milestones are a confidence 

booster and will bring about far-reaching benefits for 

public transport users and all residents and visitors. 

Non-Motorised Transport and 

Universal Accessibility Facilities 

The City of Polokwane is encouraging residents and 

visitors to walk, cycle or use public transport rather 

than private vehicles to get around the city. Through 

Leeto la Polokwane the City is promoting alternative 

modes of transportation, including non-motorised 

and public transport. Leeto la Polokwane will also 

ensure there is an accessible public transport system 

for people living with disability, the elderly and 

people with special needs. 

In terms of non-motorised transport, 12.8km of such 

facilities has been completed utilising resources 

allocated to Leeto la Polokwane, with 24.8km from 

partnerships with other grants. These facilities have 

lanes that cater for pedestrians and cyclists such 

as sidewalks, cross walks, paths and cycle lanes 

aimed at ensuring harmony and a working balance 

between non-motorised transportation modes and 

motorised transport. 

Moreover, in line with the specification of the DoT, 

the fleet required comprises universally accessible 

buses. The project accommodates all people with 

special needs, be it people in wheelchairs, those 

with hearing and visual impairments, the elderly 

and children. Special needs facilities including tactile 

paving for the blind, boarding bridges to ensure level 

boarding between the stops, stations and buses and 

easy-to-use pedestrian and passenger information 

signage which are part of the project. 

Intelligent Transport System 

Leeto la Polokwane is using the latest technology 

advancements to ensure an intelligent transport 

system to provide long term, high-quality service 

to all users. One area is that of an Automated Fare 

Collection (AFC) system and entails a flat fare for 


PROFILE 

the trunk route regardless of distance travelled, a 

tap-in system and fare gates on trunk stations. There 

will also be fare verification devices on board the 

buses and a number of roaming inspectors to ensure 

all passengers using the Leeto system have paid 

the required fares. An Automated Public Transport 

Management System (APTMS) will be implemented 

in a revised form and referred to as “APTMS Lite” 

concept. This includes Vehicle Tracking (AVL), realtime 

map display, kilometres travelled report (productive 

vs unproductive), incident and exception 

reports, driver panic button and two CCTV cameras 

on board. Leeto la Polokwane has also invested 

considerable resources in investigating the existing 

Urban Traffic Control System and lasting solutions 

to prevent and deal with congestion areas have 

been identified. 

Depot, Control Centre and Stations 

A depot and layover facility to house the fleet of 

buses will be built in Seshego. A 2km access road 

has been constructed. A scalable Control Centre is 

being constructed at the Old Peter Mokaba Stadium. 

The Control Centre will contain a number of equipment 

elements such as a video wall; workstations, 

communications, database, applications and 

Internet servers; back-up systems; vehicle tracking 

applications; driver communications systems; and 

systems engineering/integration components. For 

improved safety and comfort of users a number of 

stations will be established along the route. To date, 

50 stops and bus laybys have been constructed. All 

stations will have cashier services (selling AFC cards 

and transit products); Leeto information (routes, 

timetables transit products, hours of operation and 

general assistance). 

Bus Procurement 

In order to comply with National Treasury regulations 

for IRPTS a new, specialised vehicle fleet will 

be procured for the Leeto system. This fleet must 

have particular specifications including universal 

accessibility, and environmental friendliness. 

Mr Jan Baloyi (48) Bloodriver using Leeto la Polokwane 

NMT infrastructure to cycle to work. 

An old lady using universally accessible Non- 

Motorised Transport infrastructure. 


68

PROFILE 

Limpopo Premier Mr Chuphu Mathabatha and Executive Mayor of Polokwane Cllr. Thembi Nkadimeng 

unveiling Leeto la Polokwane. 

Vehicle Operating Company, Industry 

Transition 

Polokwane Local Municipality is determined to adhere 

to the statutory requirement that no taxi or 

bus operator should be rendered worse off as a 

result of the implementation of Leeto la Polokwane. 

There are ongoing negotiations with industry players 

to ensure that they become and remain part of 

the system. Four directly affected taxi operators, 

the Greater North Transport and industry players 

and the Transportation Directorate have signed a 

Memorandum of Agreement (MoA). This instrument 

is based on the Integrated Public Transport 

System Model. 

The model is divided into three phases as depicted 

below: 

• Pre-interim Phase (Period Until GoLive) 

• Interim Phase (2018-2021) 

• 12 Year Contract Phase (2021-2033) 

Moreover, market surveys and Operation License 

(OL) verification processes have been completed. 

There is a good working relationship and positive 

contribution from all parties involved. 

Corporate Identity 

Leeto la Polokwane prides itself in working with 

the people of Polokwane throughout all the stages 

of the project, particularly in coming up with the 

official name. This fosters a sense of pride and ownership 

among the community of the project. The 

buses will be visible and recognisable with Leeto 

la Polokwane branding. Drivers and station staff 

will undergo training in Leeto customer service 

standards. A customer service feedback facility has 

been put in place. Moreover, a second round of 

Stakeholder Engagement sessions is ongoing; a 

corporate identity (CI Manual) has been finalised and 

a website registered and is live. 

About Polokwane 

Polokwane (“Place of Safety” in Sotho) falls under 

the Limpopo province and is also often referred 

to by its former official name, Pietersburg. 

Polokwane is strategically located near to the economic 

heartland of South Africa (Johannesburg is 

300km away). The population of Polokwane grew 

from 271 911 in 2001 to 628 999 currently. It has 

178 001 households. 


OVERVIEW 

Information and communications 

technology (ICT) 

Limpopo is getting better connected. 


Limpopo Connexion is 

rolling out broadband 

infrastructure. 

• 949 community members 

received ICT skills training 

in the past year. 

When leaders and policy-makers met in the fourth quarter 

of 2016 at the Limpopo Economic Summit, one of the 

six pillars identified as pivotal to the province’s progress 

was ICT and the knowledge economy. 

A wide area network (WAN) for the province was listed as a key 

objective and it was decided that a combination of fibre and wireless 

technology should be used to reduce cost. A science and technology 

master plan is also to be developed. 

The body responsible for rolling out the infrastructure is Limpopo 

Connexion, a subsidiary of the Limpopo Economic Development 

Agency (LEDA). The first phase began in 2017 with broadband infrastructure 

in Polokwane as the focus. The second phase will cover more 

than 80% of the provincial population, as per the provincial spatial 

development framework. 

In the 2016/17 financial year, 949 community members received ICT skills 

training in a programme run by the Limpopo Department of Economic 

Development, Environment and 

Tourism (LEDET). 

One way of achieving higher 

connectivity in rural areas is 

to focus on schools and libraries. 

The Universal Service and 

Access Agency of South Africa 

(USAASA) provides ICT services 

to public and private schools, 

hospital and training colleges. 

Limpopo is one of five provinces 

that USAASA concentrates on 

with respect to school connectivity: 

more than R25-million has 

been spent since 2010 on this 

project and more than 400 smart 

devices distributed. 

Private telecommunications 

companies also have community 

responsibilities in terms 

of the National Development 

Plan. They must help connect 

under-serviced areas to the telecommunications 

and Internet 

networks. 


70

OVERVIEW 

A National Library of South 

Africa (NLSA) project, supported 

by Vodacom, will connect about 

300 community libraries via VSAT 

and Vodacom ADSL services. The 

project covers South Africa’s three 

most rural provinces – North West, 

Limpopo and Mpumalanga. 

When national libraries starting 

using an open source system 

known as Library Information 

Management System (LIMS), it was 

a good opportunity to upgrade 

the more remote libraries. Meso 

ICT Solutions was the company 

used by Vodacom and the NLSA 

to roll out the project, which will 

also give community members 

in those areas (including teachers 

and students) better access to 

the Internet. Each library has 14 

work stations and Vodacom can 

carry both fixed-line and satellite 

connectivity. 

The state is a big factor in the ICT 

sector, both in terms of its regulatory 

role, the incentives offered to 

companies and in terms of its own 

purchasing power through national 

departments and agencies. 

The State Information 

Technology Agency (SITA) supports 

a wide range of national and provincial 

departments and municipalities 

across the province, and is working 

on establishing a comprehensive 

provincial network. SITA played a 

role in the NLSA/LIMS project. 

Sita has a client base of more 

than 5 000 offices, and offers services 

in WAN support, support 

of the provincial mainframe, ICT 

training and website development, 

among others. A SITA initiative to 

help South Africa’s teachers obtain 

laptops will have an impact on 

the sector. 

South African Vanguard of Technology (Savant) is a Department of 

Trade and Industry (dti) programme. It is the marketing and awareness 

programme for the South African ICT and electronics sector. The aim 

is to develop South African exports and to attract foreign investment. 

The National Department of Communications is responsible for 

the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA, 

the regulator of communications, broadcasting and postal services), 

the SA Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) and three other agencies. 

The Telkom Foundation began supporting ICT at Manyangan High 

School and several others like it a decade ago. Schools in rural areas 

were given a wireless networked e-Learning Resource Centre consisting 

of 20 computers, a server, a printer, all Microsoft supplied software, 

insurance and a three-year maintenance plan. Internet access was 

included, powered by Vsat satellite technology. 

Ten schools have been identified by the ICT Internet Connectivity 

Project and the National Department of Education to pilot the Offline 

Content Solution. Tirelo Bosha will pay R1.4-million towards this project. 

Tirelo Bosha is a public service improvement grant administered by the 

National Department of Public Service and Administration. 

The Technology and Human Resources for Industry Programme 

(THRIP) is a programme of the National Research Foundation and supports 

an average of 235 projects per year. THRIP supports initiatives 

that use science to bring benefits to wider society. This can relate to 

boosting distant rural computer literacy or for scientists working at the 

University of Venda who have received THRIP funding for soil research. 

Intermediate computer-literacy classes are given at some Limpopo 

schools by the Internet Service Providers’ Association (ISPA), and 

the CoZa Cares project of Uniforum SA. The Maths Centre has received 

funding from the Citigroup Foundation to help it expand 

the Anglo American project for maths and science using specially 

developed software. 

ISPA and Uniforum SA run a Super Teacher of the Year award for the 

educator who has best imparted their newly acquired IT knowledge 

to pupils and members of their community when they return from 

training courses. 




Limpopo Economic Development Agency (LEDA): www.lieda.co.za 

Seda Technology Programme: www.seda.org.za 

South African Vanguard of Technology: www.savant.co.za 

State Information Technology Agency: www.sita.co.za 

Support Programme for Industrial Innovation: www.spii.co.za 

Technology Innovation Agency: www.tia.org.za 


Long-term investments are 

paying off for Vodacom Limpopo 

Customers are reaping the benefits of improved connectivity. 

Vodacom Limpopo's major investments in infrastructure 

are paying dividends for customers who 

now benefit from converged services that go well 

beyond the popular baseline of voice and data. 

This has resulted in an improved user experience 

and wider access to services, including customers 

in deep rural areas. 

The enhanced infrastructure means not only better 

performance for existing services, but has also 

brought with it a growing customer base wanting 

access to an expanded rollout of digital services 

such as video and music streaming, and the 

Internet of Things (IoT). 

Vodacom Limpopo prides itself on delivering innovative 

solutions while at the same time improving 

customer care and driving down costs for customers. 

In particular, businesses and government 

departments are seeing tangible benefit and this 

has contributed to solid growth in the region’s 

Enterprise Business Unit. Public sector departments, 

large enterprises and small businesses are 

attracted to a range of products and services that 

are scalable, reliable and fully customised to fit 

specific requirements. Our dedicated back-end 

support and customer obsession gives Vodacom 

Limpopo an edge as a partner of choice. 

investments. "To achieve this, we secured funding 

to continue the investment into the network 

which is the platform that underpins everything 

we provide." 

Chris adds: "We are fully aligned to the provincial 

government plans to invest in key economic zones, 

again highlighting the link between communications 

and an improved standard of living." 

The investment in the region in 2017 amounted to 

R217-million, which mostly went into the network 

expansion on LTE (long term evolution), 3G cellular 

network expansion, new towers and, importantly, 

into the migration and introduction of the more 

recent transmission network infrastructure. The 

expansion of these programmes enables customers 

to access higher data speeds. 

Managing Executive for the Limpopo region, Chris 

Lazarus, has witnessed first-hand the direct correlation 

with an increase in access to communications 

and an improvement in living standards. "Vodacom 

is about changing lives," he says, and illustrates 

this with reference to the company's significant 


72

PROFILE 

The Vodacom Limpopo team: from left to right: Ishmael Mathinya, Executive Head of Division Operations 

Limpopo; Busi Dlamini, Senior Manager EBU Limpopo; Chris Lazarus, Managing Executive Limpopo 

Region; and Qiniso Nyathi, Executive Head of Division CBU Limpopo. 

In 2016 alone the region upgraded more than 250 

3G towers, and also doubled its 4G footprint, in one 

year to 72% of the population. In the 2018 financial 

year, the region will upgrade more than 200 3G 

towers leading to a guaranteed increase in data 

connectivity of at least 2Mbps per user. As part of 

Vodacom’s commitment to accelerating investment 

in deep rural areas, 38 sites have been earmarked 

to be upgraded at a cost of more than R23-million. 

Polokwane city as well as other towns and informal 

areas now enjoy 4G connectivity. 

These technical rollouts have had a direct impact 

on the business environment in Limpopo. Senior 

Manager Enterprise Business Unit Limpopo, Busi 

Dlamini explains how business owners benefit from 

partnerships with Vodacom: "Our satisfied customers, 

especially within the SMME sector, bear testament 

to significant growth in their business and that 

this is directly attributed to reduced communications 

costs and tailored business solutions that have 

aided them to function optimally." 

The EBU itself has recorded good growth and the 

unit's products and solutions are gaining momentum 

within the region. Busi attributes this positive 

uplift to "our robust and agile business offerings 

and – most importantly – our value proposition to 

our customers and partners". 

Overall, Chris notes that, "Data has exploded in 

Limpopo with places like Lephalale counting among 

the top data towns in SA while at the same time 

managing to grow demand for voice. Our investment 

in Fibre has continued in various parts of the 

province and we remain the first Vodacom region 

to have deployed Fibre using an overhang methodology. 

Given that we own these poles, we this 

year started to use them to advertise subject to 

municipal approvals. 

"Growth in voice usage can be attributed to our 

Just4You proposition, which provides customers 

with relevant, personalised prices. In fact, Limpopo 

is the number-one region in this space. There is 

no doubt that Limpopo’s above-median growth 

in market share.” 

Another critical contributor to this success is the determination 

of employees. Says Chris: "An ethos that 

stands true with many of us at Vodacom Limpopo is 

to ensure that our province does not come second 

73 


in terms of access to technologies that are 

found in other provinces." 

Broader investment 

Ishmael Mathinya, Executive Head of Operations, 

says the investment narrative goes beyond the capital 

poured into infrastructure development. "The 

region has received investments in excess of R577- 

million over the past three years, with the majority 

of the investment going to upgrading and integrating 

the radio, core and transmission infrastructure. 

Over and above the annual investment, the Group 

CEO has made a commitment through an investment 

of R23-million specifically to deep rural areas," 

according to Ishmael. 

Following the network investment we are seeing 

an increase in adoption of smartphones on the 

Limpopo network with a 66% increase in data traffic; 

however, Limpopo continues to dominate the 

number of 2G devices on the network. 

Structure 

Vodacom Limpopo has three core units to serve the 

province of Limpopo: 

• The Consumer Business Unit, focused on retail 

customers 

• The Enterprise Business Unit focused on businesses 

and the public sector 

• The Technology division, focused on building, 

operating and maintaining the 

network. 

The executive in Limpopo is 

empowered to make decisions, 

backed with requisite resources 

and believes strongly in local 

economic development. 

further notes that the unit is training an additional 

five engineering interns, all from Limpopo province, 

four of whom are female. This is linked to 

Vodacom's investment and commitment to the 

upliftment of communities through its contribution 

towards education. 

Consumer Business Unit 

Qiniso Nyathi, Executive Head Consumer Business 

Unit, says our unique rates and a superb value 

proposition have grown voice and data usage at 

a rapid rate. Just4You has proven to be very popular 

with voice customers. Investment in Fibre by 

Vodacom has enabled and supported this growth, 

with improved speeds and an increased distribution 

footprint. The province is attracting an increase 

in shopping mall developments allowing 

us to broaden the reach we have to our customers, 

but also an opportunity to localise the ownership 

of stores. 

Enterprise Business Unit (EBU) 

The Enterprise Business Unit provides solutions to 

corporates, the public sector as well as small and 

medium enterprises. Our EBU customers have grown 

in the province due to the network investments 

made by Vodacom. 

Solutions range from basic communications to complex 

big data to sensing technologies. As Enterprise 

Business Unit Head Busi Dlamini explains, "Our 

Within the Technology division, 

"at least 70% of the staff members 

are originally from Limpopo 

province", an important contribution 

towards local economic 

development and utilisation of 

local talent, says Ishmael. He 


74

PROFILE 

offerings are end-to-end technology-based solutions 

that help customers' transition into the digital 

world. The objective is to streamline business operations 

while performing at optimal levels while 

reducing total cost of ownership. 

"The EBU is a product and solution leader in various 

segments and always strives to be first in the market 

with technology innovations, thus giving us the traction 

in gaining a sizeable market share." 

Busi says that the new One Net Business product 

is ideal for smaller enterprises, with Vodacom hosting 

everything in the cloud and freeing a business 

from having to install a full Private Automatic Branch 

Exchange (PABX) system. "If a sales representative 

is not in the office, calls are automatically routed 

to the correct person," says Busi. "It gives you total 

enterprise mobility. There’s no connection cost, it’s 

a free call." 

Chris adds the national perspective: "While 

Limpopo cannot boast the same number of large 

enterprises as other provinces, what we do have is 

a large number of SMEs. In this category we have 

superseded larger provinces using smaller yet 

scalable technologies." 

Technology 

The prime responsibility of the Technology team is to 

provide a mobile and fixed network to the people of 

Limpopo region. As Ishmael Mathinya, the Executive 

Head, Operations, puts it, "The network is the underlying 

platform to everything we provide." 

The provision of the fibre medium serves as an enabler 

to allow our customers to seamlessly access the 

Internet and applications of their choice. Through 

its consistent and intensive investment programme 

over many years, Vodacom Limpopo has expanded 

its network footprint to cover the provincial population 

with 99.9% 2G, 98.9% 3G and 76% 4G. New 

transmission network infrastructure, new towers 

and migration allow for constantly improved service 

and provide the framework for future upgrades. The 

expansion programmes allow customers to have 

access to higher data speeds. 

Looking further ahead, Vodacom is planning for 

the Internet of Things (IoT), which will require a 

network that can handle increased demand for 

data analytics, agility and security. This explains why 

Vodacom has been at the forefront of increasing its 

readiness to effortlessly embrace this technology 

evolution. What cloud and IoT will bring to Vodacom 


customers is convenience, easy accessibility 

to information, improved transportation, 

safety, etc. 

Social investment 

The focus of Corporate Social Investment for 

Vodacom is education and the region has done 

exactly that. The education portal marketed to 

learners and teachers has the highest registration 

of users nationally. The sign-up and use of the portal 

is free. 

In 2016, Vodacom launched the NXT LVL proposition 

to youth under the age of 25. Limpopo province 

has the highest number of youth customers using 

this proposition. As part of the launch, youth 

nationally were encouraged to sign up to the soccer 

academy programme. Of the 24 youth chosen, 

12 were from Limpopo. 

In the Limpopo province continue to invest and 

support eight ICT centres across the province where 

the main purpose is to train teachers in mathematics 

and science and this way help to integrate ICT in 

the school curriculum. In the Vhembe District we 

have partnered with CISCO to equip unemployed 

youth with relevant ICT skills to assist with the installation 

of IT equipment as well as provide instruction 

in high-end computer skills. 

In addition to this, the region adopted the Ntetele 

day-care facility in Bloodriver by refurbishing the 

centre as well as the drilling of a borehole. We 

must thank our partners, Gift of the Givers and 

MM Telecoms, who provided much support. 

NXT LVL proposition is aimed at youth under the 

age of 25. 

Children at Madiphatlakgomo school with their 

Mandela Day food packs. 

Vodacom, in partnership with Sapa Yopa bikers, 

dug a borehole for a charity organisation. 


76

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OVERVIEW 

Banking and financial services 

The provincial government is creating an insurance company. 


New banks will improve 

access for rural residents 

• NTK and VKB provide 

financial services to 

farmers. 

Three new banks are set to make their debuts on the South African 

market. In addition, the Limpopo Provincial Government, through 

the Limpopo Economic Development Agency, intends to establish 

a local life insurance company which it expects to start 

operating in 2017. 

All of the banks are state-owned entities. The intention behind 

this (and the provincial insurance) initiative is to make banking more 

accessible for rural communities and to make finance more readily 

available to small and micro-sized businesses. Trying to integrate small 

business into the mainstream economy is a major goal of national and 

provincial governments in South Africa. 

Life insurer MMI Holdings is also entering a partnership with African 

Bank to enable it to start taking deposits and loaning money. It intends 

to establish a R10-billion loan book. 

All the new banks come from state enterprises: Ithala, Postbank 

and Human Settlements Development Bank. The Ithala Development 

Finance Corporation is an enterprise funder in KwaZulu-Natal that has 

applied for a banking licence. 

In 2016, Postbank (part of the South African Post Office, SAPO) 

received a first-level licence. Once a board of directors has been 

appointed and a company 

formed, the Reserve Bank is likely 

to grant the full licence. The current 

Postbank focusses on taking 

deposits and savings accounts. 

Postbank has secured a R3.7- 

billion loan to enable it to open 

its own loan book. 

Three state entities are merging 

to create the new Human 

Settlements Development Bank: 

the National Housing Finance 

Corporation, the Housing Loan 

Fund and the National Urban 

Reconstruction and Housing 

Agency. The focus will be on 

financing housing for poorer 

households and for large statefunded 

housing projects. Part 

of the drive is to integrate cities 

better and to combat the legacy 

of the spatial divide that apartheid 

left behind. Private sector 

investment will be sought. 

Limpopo has its own bank, 

VBS Mutual Bank, which grew out 

of the Venda Building Society and 

operates mainly in the northern 

parts of the province. The Public 


78

OVERVIEW 

Investment Corporation holds 

34% of equity. The corporate office 

is in Johannesburg (which 

also hosts a branch) and there 

are four branches in Limpopo, 

including Thohoyandou. 

Ubank is owned by a trust that 

is managed by the Chamber of 

Mines and the National Union of 

Mineworkers (NUM). It has about 

100 branches and a strong presence 

in Limpopo because of its 

focus on the mining sector. Ubank 

has about half-a-million clients. 

The two most active agricultural 

companies in Limpopo are 

both registered to participate in 

the financial sector. NTK, a subsidiary 

of the Free State-based 

VKB, has access to lending for 

farmers and insurance products. 

Afgri offers the same services 

under the brand Unigro, and it 

has another service called Gro 

Capital Financial Services which 

offers more sophisticated products 

such as trade finance, foreign 

exchange and currency and 

interest rate hedging. 

For many decades, South 

Africa had a retail banking Big 

Four – Standard Bank, Nedbank, Absa/Barclays and First National Bank. 

All of them have continue to be well represented in the province, but 

Capitec Bank has now also become a major player in the retail market. 

Banks are working hard to offer products to the previously unbanked. 

Nedbank has partnerships with shops such as Boxer Stores 

and Pick n Pay where customers can have access to financial services 

in previously unserviced areas and also on all days of the week such as 

public holidays and Sundays. Nedbank also has Approve-it, which allows 

customers to accept or reject an Internet transaction by cellphone. 

Standard Bank’s community-banking initiative offers a low-cost 

cellphone-banking service. Retailers can act as agents for the bank, 

even in very remote rural areas. Shops such as Shoprite, Pep and Spar 

are connected, as are certain spazas. 

The insurance market has become more varied over time, with a 

greater variety of products now available to more market segments, 

including middle-income earners. A typical example of a specific product 

that is responding to new realities is Old Mutual’s iWYZE medical 

gap cover, designed to pay the difference between what a medical aid 

scheme is willing to pay and what the hospital or doctor is charging. 


Insurance South Africa: www.insurance.za.org 

National Credit Regulator: www.ncr.org.za 

Office of the Auditor-General of South Africa: www.agsa.co.za 

Post Bank: www.postbank.co.za 

Public Investment Corporation: www.pic.gov.za 

South African Institute for Chartered Accountants: 

www.saica.co.za 


OVERVIEW 

Development finance 

and SMME support 

A new strategy for the economies of townships and villages will boost SMMEs. 


Shanduka Black Umbrellas 

has 20 client businesses in 

Lephalale. 

• A co-operative is to be 

established to do bulk 

buying for SMEs and 

co-operatives. 

A 

concerted strategy to strengthen and develop the economies 

of the townships and villages of Limpopo has 

been launched. Spearheaded by the Limpopo Economic 

Development Agency (LEDA), a unit of the Limpopo 

Department of Economic Development, Environment and Tourism 

(LEDET), the plan has eight focus areas which include making licences 

and permits easier to obtain, that government departments buy from 

small, medium and micro-enterprises (SMMEs), indigenous products 

are supported and protected, and encouraging small businesses to 

support one another through the clustering approach. 

LEDET has signed memorandums of understanding with the South 

African Bureau of Standards (SABS) and with Productivity South Africa. 

These agreements aim to help SMMEs within the province become 

more competitive. 

Gaining access to markets is crucial for SMMEs and the programme 

aims to assist in that regard. Ten SMMEs and 10 co-operatives are 

currently being assisted in getting access to the mainstream market. 

Agricultural entrepreneurs will benefit from the Agri-park scheme. 

A series of meetings around the province began in June 2017, 

organised by LEDET. The aim was to hear from owners of small businesses 

such as plumbers, panel-beaters, mini-bus taxis, street vendors 

and taverns. Among the problems identified are: 

• financial products that do not address the needs of entrepreneurs 

• dominance of ownership by foreign entrepreneurs 

• retail shopping malls crowding 

out local traders 

• lack of bargaining power of 

smaller retailers. 

LEDA is to establish a bulkbuying 

co-operative. The plan is 

to enlist more than 200 members 

whose collective buying power 

will give them an advantage in 

purchasing stock. 

An infrastructure project that 

will assist SMMEs and co-operatives 

is under way near Polokwane 

at the Seshego Industrial Park. 

The National Department of 

Trade and Industry has committed 

R21-million to revitalising the 

park which will provide trading 

and storage space for businesses 

of all sizes. 

The construction by the provincial 

government of market 

stalls is aimed at supporting 

small-scale farmers and traders. 

Market stalls have been erected 

at Mopani District and will be 

put up in Elias Motsoaledi Local 


80

OVERVIEW 

Municipality in the Sekhukhune 

District and Molemole Local 

Municipality in the Capricorn 

District. 

The National Department 

of Small Business Development 

(DSBD) has several programmes to 

assist SMMEs and co-operatives. 

These include: 

• The Black Business Supplier 

Development Programme, a 

cost-sharing grant to promote 

competitiveness 

• The Co-operative Incentive 

Scheme, a 100% grant. 

The Small Enterprise 

Development Agency (Seda) is 

a subsidiary of the DSDB and is 

one of the most active agencies in 

supporting entrepreneurs. Seda is 

not a financial agency, focussing 

rather on training and administrative 

support, although the agency 

will help SMMEs get in touch with 

financial bodies. 

The Seda Limpopo Jewellery 

Incubator (SLJI) develops entrepreneurship 

among jewellers in 

Limpopo. In the south-east of the 

province the Biofuels Incubator 

promotes skills in that important 

sector. 

Seda has initiated a national 

programme designed to make 

co-operatives and jointly owned 

enterprises stronger. As part of 

the Cooperatives and Community 

Public Private Partnership (CPPP) 

programme, Seda is supporting a 

project in Tarentaal. 

The National Gazelles is a national 

SMME accelerator jointly 

funded by Seda and the DSBD. 

The aim is to identify and support 

SMEs with growth potential 

across priority sectors aligned 

with the National Development 

Plan and Seda’s SMME strategy. Businesses can receive up to R1-million 

for training, productivity advice, business skills development and the 

purchase of equipment. 

The Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) disburses about R400- 

million annually in Limpopo. Projects include an Nguni cattle breeding 

scheme, a new hospital in Lebowakgomo, the development of a 

ferrochrome smelter and a facility for making coking coal briquettes. 

The Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) is another major 

funder of public projects. 

Private sector 

One of the best ways of supporting SMMEs in Limpopo is through 

the supply chain for the province’s mines. The provincial Premier has 

challenged mines to achieve a 20% SMME procurement target. 

A private initiative that has used the supply chain to create employment 

is Anglo American’s Zimele, which has established 29 small 

business hubs in areas such as Mokopane and Burgersfort. 

More than 20 small businesses are registered as clients with the 

Shanduka Black Umbrella incubator in Lephalale. The sectors in which 

these companies operate range from plant hire and construction 

to training and marketing. Individual mentors for these enterprises 

are drawn from the local TVET college, the Limpopo Economic 

Development Agency and private businesses. 

The major banks all have SMME offerings. Standard Bank runs a 

Community Investment Fund and Nedbank offers an enterprise development 

product for businesses with turnovers up to R35-million. 

Agri-business and agri-processing are among the three sectors that 

are targeted by the Masisizane Fund for loan financing. The others are 

franchising/commercial and supply chain/manufacturing. Over and 

above loans that are available, training is offered through a Business 

Accelerator Programme. 


Development Bank of Southern Africa: www.dbsa.org 

Gazelles: www.nationalgazelles.org.za 

Industrial Development Corporation: www.idc.co.za 

Limpopo Department of Economic Development, Environment and 

Tourism: www.ledet.gov.za 

National Department of Small Business Development: 

www.dsbd.gov.za 

Shanduka Black Umbrellas: www.shandukablackumbrellas.org 

Small Enterprise Development Agency: www.seda.org.za 

Small Enterprise Finance Agency: www.sefa.co.za 


MASISIZANE FUND 

2017 marks the tenth anniversary of the 

Masisizane Fund. Established as an initiative 

of Old Mutual South Africa in 2007 following 

the closure of the Unclaimed Shares Trust, the 

Masisizane Fund has made good inroads 

toward fulfilling their mandate to contribute 

meaningfully to employment creation, poverty 

eradication, the reduction of inequality, 

economic growth and attraction of investments. 

In 2016, loans to the value of R18.4 million 

were approved for the Limpopo region, 

R14 million was dispersed, four enterprises were 

funded and 68 jobs were facilitated . 

The Masisizane Fund offers tailored, integrated 

and flexible financial and non-financial 

solutions including financial education, 

capacity development and mentoring 

support. "We take time to fully understand 

each enterprise’s needs, challenges and 

characteristics. The partnerships this 

understanding creates with small business 

owners adds value and offers innovative 

enterprise finance models aimed at ensuring 

long-term enterprise growth, sustainability 

and development impact", says Maphala 

Mosomane, Provincial Manager, Limpopo 

and Mpumalanga. 

Maphala Mosomane, 

Provincial Manager 

Limpopo and 

Mpumalanga 

A Masisizane Client Competition was launched 

in the second half of 2016 to celebrate 

our clients’ outstanding achievements. This 

competition comprises five provincial 

events followed by a national event in 

July 2017 when we celebrate our 10th 

anniversary and announce the national 

winner. 

The Limpopo event held in December 2016 saw 

the Mashashane Filling Station (Pty) Ltd win the 

Best Youth Owned Business of the Year award. 

Alongside Trading & Projects CC won 

the Entrepreneur of the Year award and 

Mathosim Trimming & Upholstery CC 

received two awards, namely Best Female 

Owned Business and Best Business of the Year. 

Mashashane Filling Station (Pty) Ltd is a 

legacy business established by the late 

Mr GM Ledwaba. The business ceased its 

operation in 2003. The Ledwaba family 

retained ownership but rented the business to 

someone else until early 2012 when it was 

inherited by Lucas Ledwaba who worked to 

formalise the operations and register it as a 

private company. Since then the 

Mashashane Filling Station (MFS) has only 

improved and grown under Lucas’ 

leadership. 

Lucas is a self-made man who, in spite of 

not having a formal tertiary education, has 

natural business acumen, understands the 

nature of his business, has experience and is 

a formidable entrepreneur. 

Making full use of the three underground tanks 

for petrol with a total capacity of 41000 litres 

for ULP 95, ULP 93 and LRP 93, a disciplined 


Lucas managed to increase the fuel sales from 

3 000 litres to approximately 62 000 litres 

per month. He then went on to improving 

the business by building a convenience 

store, fencing off the property and buying a 

business vehicle. 

employs 6 petrol attendants and 3 cashiers. 

They started operating 24 hours a day, seven 

days a week as of December 2015. MSF is 

even prepared with a standby generator in 

case of load shedding, though at the moment, 

it is not a major problem in the area. 

In 2015 Masisizane provided Lucas with 

a loan which he used to acquire two more 

overland diesel tanks, each with a capacity 

of 9 000 litres. He also had the foresight 

of having an awning constructed that would 

provide much-needed shade to his customers 

and employees in this extremely warm part of 

South Africa with its harsh climatic conditions. 

The Mashashane Filling Station under Lucas’ 

direction now uses a tag system in the forecourt, 

As a well-respected and concerned member of 

the Mashashane community, Lucas Ledwaba 

recognised the deficit caused by a lack of 

internet access in the area. 

To redress this he provided an office on the 

MFS premises to a young unemployed youth 

from the area who now successfully operates 

the only Internet Café in the area, providing 

services ranging from faxing to internet access. 

Lucas with some of his employees at MFS. 

Lucas receiving the award for the 

Best Youth Owned Business in Limpopo from 

management of the Masisizane Fund. 

Kokstad Flagship Office 039 727 3100 NDlamini2@oldmutual.com 

Eastern Cape 043 704 0116 PMlilo@oldmutual.com 

Gauteng (incl. North West, Free State) 011 217 1746 NBoqo@oldmutual.com 

Western Cape 021 509 5074 ASnyders@oldmutual.com 

KwaZulu-Natal 031 335 0402 SNkosi4@oldmutual.com 

Limpopo (Incl. Mpumalanga) 015 287 4279 BSemenya@oldmutual.com 

More information on Masisizane can also be accessed from our 

website: www.masisizane.co.za 

An initiative of the 

Group 

bds L10404 29.03

PROFILE 

Polokwane Chamber 

of Business 

The Chamber seeks to support and develop local businesses 

and encourage investment in the city. 

Vision 

To be the home that advocates 

the voice of business. 

Mission 

• To create value for members. 

• To unlock business opportunities 

for members. 

• To facilitate a platform for best 

business practice. 

• To promote sound governance 

principles by maintaining high 

business ethics. 

• To encourage socially responsible 

corporate citizens in business. 

• To provide a platform for dialogue and 

partnership within business and public sector. 

Policy 

The policy of the chamber is to, without reference 

to colour of skin, race, gender, culture or religious 

conviction: 

• Attend to the interests of its members as an 

apolitical, non-racial organisation 

• Effect, maintain and promote an optimum-free 

market system in a predominantly capitalist 

system 

• Promote and protect free enterprise and protect 

the interests of its members as business persons 

and to act as a representative for its members 

Strategy 

The overall strategy for 2016 is to: 

Polokwane Chamber of Business 2016 Exco. 

• Reposition the Chamber as a respected contributor 

to the Limpopo economy through active 

engagement of key stakeholders for the promotion 

of Chamber interests and benefits for its 

members. 

• Enhance value-add to its members through 

effective networking opportunities. 

• Engage on pertinent business issues within the 

province. 

• Enhance closer working relations between the 

Chamber and its members and stakeholders. 

CONTACT INFO 

Physical address: No 47, 19th Industria 

Street, Polokwane 

Tel: +27 15 297 8057 

Fax: 086 513 2644 / +27 15 297 8058 

Email: admin@pcob.co.za 

Website: www.pcob.co.za 


84

The Black Management 

Forum Limpopo 

FOCUS 

Advancing socio-economic transformation. 

The Black Management Forum (the BMF) is the foremost organisation 

in the development of managerial leadership and advancement 

of socio-economic transformation in South Africa. Our 

focus in Limpopo is to ensure that we support and develop those 

already in managerial positions. We also support those who aspire to 

be managers. The newly-elected leadership lead by Dr John Mudau as 

the provincial Chairperson has recommitted assisting past and current 

members to hold the highest ethical standards. 

The current programmes include: 

• Engagement with district mayors. This programme is aimed at 

ensuring that municipalities at all levels are assisted to get out 

of the difficulties they find themselves in, particularly related to 

audit opinions. It is the view of this leadership that the BMF should 

provide technical support and, in some cases, competent human 

capital that will assist municipalities. It is unacceptable to the BMF 

that two decades after independence the province still struggles 

to get competent people. We think BMF should encourage its 

members to make their skills available to municipalities. We are 

equally happy with the support we are getting from both district 

and local mayors in this regard. 

• Support for women in business. It is the considered view of the BMF 

in Limpopo that if the economy of the province is to be rejuvenated 

and the province’s contribution to national GDP is to increase, BMF 

must do the right thing. This means supporting women in business. 

BMF has reached an agreement with IDC. The agreement requires 

BMF to submit a list of women-owned agri-processing companies 

to the IDC. The Chief Executive Officer of the IDC had committed 

that the corporation will fund these companies. This is the right 

thing to do and will assist the province greatly. 

• The development of young entrepreneurs. The provincial leadership 

is embarking on a youth entrepreneurship programme 

through the BMF Young Professional wing. The idea is to encourage 

young professionals to start their own businesses which they will 

manage on their own. This will help to truly transform the economy 

of the province. 

Dr John Mudau, Black 

Management Forum 

Limpopo Provincial 

Chairperson 

CONTACT INFO 

Physical address: 73 Biccard 

Street, Maneo House PWC, 


Acting Provincial 

Administrator (Limpopo) 

Black Management Forum 

(BMF): David S Maatsie 

Tel: +2715 297 0780 

Mobile: +27 076 267 1849 

E-mail: BMFL@bmfonline. 

co.za 

Website: www.bmfonline.co.za 


OVERVIEW 

Education and training 

Relevant training for employment is a provincial priority. 

The Limpopo Provincial Government is running a national pilot 

project in training for Tool, Dye and Mould-Making. 

There is a plan to establish a Manufacturing Support Centre to 

make sure that the right skills are being taught to support industry. 

Participants include the Limpopo Tooling Initiative Advisory Board, the 

Technology Information Agency and universities. 

During the 2016/17 financial year, the provincial government 

employed 134 graduates. A further 120 trainee field rangers were 

recruited through the Jobs Fund. Deployment to work in game and 

nature reserves began in April 2016 and continued through 2017, in 

consultation with traditional authorities around the province. Another 

6 362 young people were trained in business and technical skills and 

3 907 were employed in either the public and private sector. A further 

8 300 will be absorbed in the 2017/18 financial year as part of the same 

programme. In a specialist programme to develop skills in the green 

economy, 31 young people are studying energy management systems. 

Other training achievements include: 

• 31 being certified as energy managers 

• 6 fully accredited as artisans 

• 949 community members receiving ICT skills training. 

The Medupi Power Station Joint Venture (Grinaker-LTA, Murray & 

Roberts and Concor) has a training facility where about 1 300 local people 

have been trained to qualify for jobs on this complex building site. 

De Beers has established a Skills Development Centre, linked to its 

Venetia Mine. The centre caters not only to mine employees, but also 

EDUCATION STATISTICS, 2017 

Scholar transport schools 255 

NSNP beneficiaries* 3 854 

No-fee school pupils 

1.7-million 

Primary Schools offering Grade R 2 339 

Classrooms built 2015/16 354 

New schools built 2015/16 5 

Teachers given extra training:2013-2016 1 400 

* National Schools Nutrition Programme 

SOURCE: LIMPOPO PREMIER’S STATE OF PROVINCE SPEECH, 2017 


Trainee field rangers have 

been recruited through the 

Jobs Fund. 

for local school pupils and adults 

from the community of Alldays. 

Impala Platinum, with 

Limpopo subsidiary Marula 

Platinum, has a partnership with 

the National Department of 

Mineral Resources and the Da 

Vinci Institute for Technology 

Management, which focuses on 

the training of black women in 

the mining industry. 

Anglo Platinum (Amplats) has 

a new Mining Training Centre 

(Eastern Limb) at its Twickenham 

mine which will also deliver training 

and assessment to staff of 

other operations. 

There are seven Technical 

and Vocational Education and 

Training (TVET) colleges in 

Limpopo: Capricorn College, 

Lephalale College, Mopani East 

College, Mopani South College, 

Sekhukhune College, Vhembe 

College and Waterberg College. 

Capricorn College has three 

campuses, each of which has a 

slightly different focus. The city 

campus in Polokwane offers business 

studies, engineering and 


86

OVERVIEW 

National Curriculum Vocation 

(NCV) subjects. Seshego (near 

Polokwane) has an engineering 

focus while Senwabarwana is 

situated in a rural area and concentrates 

on teaching hospitality 

and hairdressing. 

At Lephalale TVET College 

students can study Business 

Studies, Hospitality, Engineering 

Studies, Nature Management 

and Computer Science. The college 

has a satellite campus at 

Modimolle. Murray & Roberts is 

training hundreds of artisans at 

the Tlhahlong training centre in 

partnership with the college and 

merSETA. 

Waterberg College operates 

as five business training centres 

across two municipalities, 

namely Lepelle-Nkumbi and 

Mogalakwena. 

Tertiary 

Sixty students proudly enrolled 

in January 2016 at the School 

of Medicine at Turfloop. This 

forms part of the reconstituted 

Faculty of Health Sciences of the 

University of Limpopo. 

Polokwane Municipality has 

made the land available for the 

construction of the Limpopo 

Academic Hospital and the national 

Ministry of Finance has announced 

that it will be working 

towards the realisation of plans 

for both the Limpopo Academic 

Hospital and the new Medical 

School in Limpopo. 

The curriculum for the 

undergraduate programme 

has been approved by the 

Health Professions Council 

The Sumbandila Scholarship Trust supports poor pupils in the 

Vhembe District at Ridgeway College. 

of South Africa (HPCSA) and the Council for Higher Education 

accrediting committee. 

The Nedbank Chair of Accounting was an important part of the 

University of Limpopo’s strategy to get national accreditation for its 

accounting classes, which has been achieved. 

The University of Venda for Science and Technology (Univen) is 

situated in Thohoyandou in the far north-eastern part of the province. 

Univen has eight schools, with Environmental Sciences, Agriculture and 

Rural Development and Forestry illustrating the practical emphasis of 

the institution. The School of Environmental Sciences is planning to 

establish a mining-engineering programme. 

The University of South Africa (Unisa), which mostly has correspondence 

students, has a regional support centre in Polokwane and 

agencies at Makhado and Giyani. 

The Turfloop Graduate School of Leadership is based in Edupark, 

Polokwane, and offers three master’s degrees. These are the Master 

of Business Administration (MBA), the Master of Public Administration 

(MPA) and the Master of Development (MDev). 


Council of Higher Education: www.che.ac.za 

Mining Qualifications Authority: www.mqa.org.za 

Sumbandila Scholarship Trust: www.sumbandila.org 

Turfloof Graduate School of Leadership: www.ul.ac.za 

University of Limpopo: www.ul.ac.za 

University of South Africa: www.unisa.ac.za 

University of Venda for Science and Technology: www.univen.ac.za 

Waterberg College: www.waterbergcollege.co.za 


OVERVIEW 

Tourism 

Cultural tourism is growing fast in Limpopo. 


Rural villagers have been 

encouraged to host tourists. 

• 80% of game hunting 

happens in Limpopo. 

• Park Inn by Radisson 

Polokwane has opened. 

Limpopo Province has very varied tourism assets that include 

the bare bushveld of the north, misty mountains in the central 

highlands, hot springs, a unique cycad forest, great golf courses 

and the northern part of the Kruger National Park. There are 

numerous private game reserves and many provincial game and nature 

reserves. 

Limpopo’s national parks are run by South African National Parks 

(SANParks). These are Kruger, Mapungubwe and Marakele national 

parks. There are more than 50 provincial nature reserves managed by 

the Limpopo Department of Economic Development, Environment 

and Tourism (LEDET). They serve to promote tourism, develop the local 

economies and promote ecological conservation. Many of these 

reserves are communally owned but jointly managed by the province 

and communities. 

The provincial government has committed to enhancing the value 

of Limpopo’s two UNESCO World Heritage Sites, Mapungubwe Heritage 

Site and Makapans Valley. This is also a priority programme in the National 

Tourism Sector Strategy. The Waterberg Biosphere Reserve is a UNESCO 

protected site. 

Limpopo in 2016/17 attracted 405 734 visitors to the province, generating 

an amount of R1.8-billion for the provincial economy. 

A new drive to promote home-stays is under way in the northern 

part of the province. Promoting 

local culture and small enterprises 

is in keeping with the designation 

of the year 2017 by the United 

Nations as the International Year 

of Sustainable Tourism. 

Getting tourists to eat mopani 

worms and learn about local 

traditions and cultural practices 

would help to generate income 

for villages and hamlets otherwise 

outside the mainstream 

economy. 

In support of the arts and 

culture sector, a potential area of 

growth for tourism in Limpopo, a 

performance theatre is to be built 

in Polokwane. 

The Mapungubwe Festival 

is growing in stature every year. 

In addition to the popular musical 

performances, crafters have 

an opportunity to display their 

crafts and generate good income 

during the festivities. 

The Marula Festival has been 

even more of a success. The event 

regularly attracts 30 000 festival- 


88

OVERVIEW 

goers. Several neighbouring 

countries are well represented in 

the crowds and 13 co-operatives 

operating under the Mukumbi 

Industries brand normally brew 

about 12 000 litres of marula 

beverages for the thirsty crowds. 

Other marula products are also 

sold such as nuts, body lotions, 

jam, cooking oil and soap. 

The South African Golf Tourism 

Association says that up to 10% 

of visitors to the country are attracted 

by its golf courses, and 

Limpopo’s offering has been extended 

and improved in recent 

years. At the high-end of the luxury 

offering are the Zebula Golf 

Estate and Spa (west of Bela-Bela) 

and the Legend Golf and Safari 

Resort which has the single most 

dramatic golf hole in the world: a 

par-three where golfers tee off the 

top of a mountain and take aim at 

an Africa-shaped green way down 

at the bottom of the hill. 

Adventurous visitors can 

choose from off-road biking, 

hunting, elephant rides and tough 

4x4 trails. A vast array of different 

cultures extend from the Rain 

Queen and her people in the central 

districts, to the myth-inspired 

art of the Venda in the north, to 

the bright geometric house designs 

of the Ndabele people in 

the Sekhukhune District. 

Although most of the province’s 

resorts and lodges are in 

private hands, the province has 

three national parks, and the 

provincial government runs 

54 nature reserves of different 

types. The combined land area 

of Limpopo’s national, provincial 

and private game and nature reserves 

is 3.6-million hectares. 

According to the Limpopo Premier’s office, the tourism sector 

employs about 22 414 people. 

The Limpopo Tourism Agency is pursuing a multi-national 

tourism strategy, with the Limpopo-Zambezi brand initiative one 

example of new approaches to marketing the province. 

Hotels and casinos 

A new 160-room Park Inn by Radisson Polokwane has opened in the 

provincial capital. Located near the golf course and the Peter Mokaba 

Stadium, the hotel also has conference and event facilities. 

Tsogo Sun runs the Garden Court Polokwane, which has 180 rooms 

ranging from executive suites to family rooms. 

The Protea Hotel group has three hotels in the province. In the 

capital city of Polokwane, the Protea Hotel Landmark has 80 rooms 

and six conference venues. Just outside the city is the Protea Hotel 

Ranch Resort where guests can walk with lions. The hotel is on a 1 000- 

hectare nature conservancy and specialises in catering for weddings. 

In Mokopane near the Waterberg mountains, the Protea Hotel The Park 

has 125 rooms and can cater for up to 400 conference delegates. The 

three-star hotel recently added 25 self-catering units. 

The Fusion Boutique Hotel in the provincial capital offers five-star 

quality in 30 en-suite rooms and two exclusive suites. Sun International 

runs the Meropa Casino and Entertainment World near Polokwane. In 

the province’s northern regions at Thohoyandou, there is the Khoroni 

Hotel, Casino and Convention Resort. This is a Peermont venture and 

there is a three-star Peermont Metcourt Hotel in the complex. The 

Limpopo Gambling Board regulates the industry and grants licences. 

The Mopani District was recently granted two new bingo licences. 

The most recent casino licence was awarded to Peermont Global 

Resorts for the official launch and operation of the Thaba Moshate 

Casino, Hotel and Conference Centre in the Greater Tubatse Local 

Municipality. During construction 751 people were employed and 

a further 180 permanent jobs are expected when the casino is 

fully operational. 

There are now 237 limited pay-out gambling machines in the 

province, and licences of one sort or another generated R50-million 

for the provincial government in 2015. 

Nature 

The National Department of Tourism is facilitating the upgrade of a 

lodge in the Vhembe District. Wisani Lodge is about 20 minutes drive 

from the Punda Maria gate of the Kruger National Park and is in an area 

particularly rich in birdlife. This community-owned project needs a 


OVERVIEW 

private investor with about R10-million to invest in upgrading the 

lodge’s six chalets and adding another 14. A master plan and environmental 

impact assessment report already exists. 

Several resorts in a variety of climatic regions fall under the control 

of the provincial body, Limpopo Wildlife Resorts. Fourteen of the 

province’s resorts have been targeted for refurbishment, creating 320 

temporary and 120 permanent jobs. Annual revenue of R10-million is 

expected to be gained from these revamped resorts, which include 

these facilities in the Waterberg: 

• Nylsvley Birding Lodge, a registered RAMSAR wetland area 

• D’nyala Game Lodge 

• Mokolo Dam 

• Nwanedi Resort (Vhembe Region) 

• Modjadji Nature Resort (Mopani Region) 

• Blouberg Nature Reserve (Capricorn Region) 

• Tambotie River Lodge (Sekhukhune Region) 

Private game reserves, resorts and lodges 

The area adjacent to the Kruger National Park is rich in private game 

reserves, some of which are regarded as among the finest luxury tourist 

offerings in the world. The Sabi Sands Game Reserve has several 

accommodation options within its 65 000 hectares, ranging from the 

luxurious to the ultra-luxurious. Like the Manyaleti Game Reserve to 

its north, Sabi Sands effectively forms the western boundary of the 

Kruger Park, with animals free to roam in and out of the private reserves. 

Legend Lodges, Hotels and Resorts has three properties in Limpopo. 

Both Entabeni Safari Lodges and the Legend Golf & Safari Resort are located 

within the Entabeni Safari Conservancy in the Waterberg District. 

The exclusive Jackalberry Lodge (16 guests at a time) lies to the east 

within the Thornybush Game Reserve which is a reserve of 10 500ha 

of pristine bush just outside the Kruger National Park. 

Forever Resorts encompasses the warm water springs of the southern 

Waterberg (Warmbaths at Bela-Bela), the exotic baobab trees of the 

north (Tshipise Resort), the adventurous offerings of the Blyde River 

Canyon (Swadini Resort) and the true bushveld experience on the edge 

of the Kruger National Park (Phalaborwa Safari Park at Phalaborwa Gate). 

All but the latter of these resorts have conference facilities ranging from 

130 to 700 delegates. 

Tourism routes and clusters 

The Bush to Beach Tourism Route covers sites and sights between 

Phalaborwa and the east coast of Mozambique, an example of Limpopo’s 

successful partnership with a neighbouring country. A grant of more 

than R600 000 from the Limpopo 

Local Economic Development 

programme aims to link the poorer 

rural communities along the route 

with the more mainstream economic 

nodes. Open Africa is the 

lead agent in developing community 

tourism. 

From game reserves in 

Limpopo (including the Kruger 

National Park) to the beaches of 

Xai-Xai in Mozambique, the route 

has been supported by private operators 

and investors and therefore 

is able to offer excellent products 

and services to complement 

the natural scenery. The Bush to 

Beach Tourism Route is one of several 

such routes in the province, 

including: 

• Kruger to Canyon, linking 

Phalaborwa to the Blyde River 

Canyon through the Kruger 

National Park 

• Seraki Blouberg, in the 

Blouberg mountain range, including 

two nature reserves 

and encompassing the land of 

the 160 000 people living in 117 

traditional settlements 

• Land of Legends, in the land 

of the VhaVenda (northern 

Limpopo). Thohoyandou is 

the hub for exploring the area 

around the Soutpansberg 

mountain range that contains 

more than 500 species 

of trees. Features include the 

sacred sites of Lake Fundudzi, 

the Thathe Vondo Forest 

and the Phiphidi Waterfall. 

A 3 000-year-old baobab, 

43 metres around, is found near 

Sagole Spa. 

Other tourism routes in the 

province include: the African 

Ivory Route, the Golf Route, 


90

INTERVIEW 

Park Inn by Radisson 

Polokwane 

Mr Mofasi Lekota, owner of Polokwane’s latest 

new hotel, outlines his vision. 

Mofasi Lekota 

BIOGRAPHY 

Mofasi Lekota gained his first 

degree from the University of 

Limpopo which was followed 

by an MBA from Rutgers University 

(USA) and he is currently 

studying for a doctorate 

in Business Management. He 

has Board Leadership Development 

qualifications from American 

and South African schools 

of business. He has been on 

the boards of JSE-listed companies 

like Adcorp Holdings 

and is currently the executive 

chairman of Amazin Hotels 

and the non-executive Chairman 

of the Limpopo Economic 

Development Agency. 

Why have you invested in Polokwane? 

I am originally from Polokwane so I have ties with the province and 

the city. I spend quite a lot of time here, and I’m also involved in the 

Limpopo Economic Development Agency (LEDA) as non-executive 

Chairman. I’ve been in other parts of the country and spent some 

time overseas. I have invested in a variety of businesses including 

cement manufacturing. 

My interest in hospitality started a few years ago with a B&B in 

Midrand, followed by a lodge in Makhado and a 70-room hotel in 

Mbombela. The investment decision was influenced to some extent by 

the fact that I come from here, I understand the community and there 

is an embedded wish to invest back in the community I come from. 

What is the target market? 

Globally the Park Inn brand targets both business and leisure travellers 

who attach importance to quality of service and value for money. A 

clean, comfortable hotel that provides best-in-class service. 

As a relatively new entrant in the hospitality market mainstream, it 

was important to match the project to a clear gap. I wanted to address 

an existing need and Polokwane came to mind. 

Why Radisson? 

I looked at almost all the major international hotel operators in my 

thorough research. The first thing I liked about Radisson was the principle 

that they don’t own, but operate hotels, so there is no potential for 

conflict of interest. The second thing was their vision for Africa. They 

are one of the fastest growing brands on the African continent. I liked 

the energy and the support that their management give, especially 

the technical support during the development phase. The choice 

was very deliberate. 

How important will the events/conferences side of the 

business be? 

It is important to us. We have large enough facilities, to cater for select 

groups and the latest conferencing technology. We offer some of the 

best in the province. 


OVERVIEW 

the Limpopo Valley Route, 

the Mapungubwe Route, the 

Ribolla Open Africa Route, the 

Soutpansberg-Limpopo Birding 

Route, the Valley of the Olifant 

Route and the Waterberg 

Biosphere Experience. 

Outdoor pursuits 

National parks: The Kruger 

National Park covers nearly 20 000 

square kilometres and attracts 

more than a million visitors annually. 

It has six ecosystems, 1 982 

species of plants, 517 species of 

birds and 147 species of mammals 

– including each of the “Big Five”: 

lion, leopard, African elephant, 

African buffalo and rhinoceros. 

The Marakele National Park 

is situated on the Waterberg escarpment 

in the south-west of 

the province, relatively near to 

Gauteng. The Sterkstroom River 

runs through it and it is home to 

elephant, rhino and rare vultures. 

Adventure tourism: The mountains 

of the Waterberg, the 

Soutpansberg and the northern 

reaches of the Drakensberg offer 

opportunities for abseiling, caving, 

kloofing and rock-climbing. 

White-water rafting and tubing 

are other popular activities, especially 

in the Limpopo Valley and in 

the Olifants and Blyde canyons in 

the east of the province. Mountain 

biking is a favourite activity in the 

Magoebaskloof area, while quadbiking 

can be found in parts of the 

province. 

Hunting: The centre of hunting 

is the north-western town of 

Lephalale, with other northern 

towns like Alldays, Vivo, Musina 

and Dendron near to private game farms on which hunting is undertaken. 

This lucrative activity is strictly controlled by the Professional 

Hunters’ Association (PHA), with certain restrictions in place to protect 

the long-term future of the environment. The PHA estimated the value 

of the industry in 2010 at R7.6-billion. 

About 80% of the hunting that takes place in South Africa occurs in 

Limpopo on approximately 4 500 farms. Wildlife auctions are popular 

events in Limpopo. Wild Life Rancher website gives regular updates 

on the latest auctions. Some examples of prices achieved at auctions 

in 2017 include R3.6-million for a Nyala bull, R24.8-million for three 

buffalo cows (Piet du Toit auctions) and a combined turnover at an 

auction held by Dries Visser Pure Bred Game of R44.7-million. These 

figures give an indication of the potential of this market. 

Birding: The Blouberg Nature Reserve is an excellent site for Cape 

Vultures, containing as it does one of the largest breeding colonies. 

Four birding routes criss-cross the province, illustrating the diversity of 

birds found in the province’s varied terrain. More than 600 bird species 

have been recorded. 

ANNUAL EVENTS 

Limpopo Marula Festival, Phalaborwa (February) 

Polokwane Show and Music Festival (March) 

Kiwifruit Festival, Magoebaskloof (April) 

Zion Christian Church gathering, Moria (Easter) 

Thabazimbi Tourism & Game Expo. Potato Festival, Vivo (May) 

Ellisras Bushveld Festival. Polokwane Arts Festival (June) 

Musina Show (July) 

Oppikoppi, music festival, Northam. Trout Festival, Haenertsburg 

(August) 

Magoebaskloof Spring Festival (September) 

Biltong Festival, Mokopane (October) 

Mapungubwe Arts and Cultural Festival, Polokwane (December) 




Limpopo Department of Sport, Arts and Culture: 

www.sac.limpopo.gov.za 

Marula Festival: www.limpopomarulafest.co.za 

Polokwane Show: www.polokwaneshow.co.za 

South African Golf Tourism Association: www.sagta.co.za 

South African National Parks: www.sanparks.co.za 

South African Tourism: www.southafrica.net 


92

Limpopo 

Provincial Government 

A guide to Limpopo’s provincial government departments. 

Visit: www.limpopo.gov.za 

LISTING 

Office of the Premier 

Premier: Mr Chupu Stanley Mathabatha 

Mowaneng Building, 40 Hans van Rensburg Street, Polokwane 0700 

Tel: +27 15 287 6515 | Fax: +27 15 291 3911 

Website: www.limpopo.gov.za 

Department of Agriculture 

MEC: Mr Seaparo Charles Sekoati (Acting) 

Temo Towers, 69 Biccard Street, Polokwane 0699 

Tel: +27 15 294 3147 | Fax: +27 15 294 4506 

Website: www.lda.gov.za 

Department of Co-operative Governance, 

Human Settlements and Traditional Affairs 

MEC: Ms Makoma Makhurupetje 

20 Rabie Street, Hensa Building, Polokwane 0700 

Tel: +27 15 284 5060 | Fax: +27 15 291 3988/086 576 4784 

Website: www.limpopo.coghsta.gov.za 

Department of Economic Development, 

Environment and Tourism 

MEC: Mr Charles Seaparo Sekoah 

Evridiki Towers, 20 Hans van Rensburg Street, Polokwane 0699 

Tel: +27 15 290 7600 | Fax: +27 15 297 0885 

Website: www.ledet.gov.za 

Department of Education 

MEC: Mr Ishmael Kgetjepe 

Department of Education Building, cnr Biccard and Excelsior Streets, 


Tel: +27 15 290 9301 | Fax: +27 15 297 0885/086 531 0539 

Website: www.edu.limpopo.gov.za 

Department of Health 

MEC: Dr Phophi Ramathuba 

18 College Street, Polokwane 0699 

Tel: +27 15 293 6000 | Fax: +27 15 293 2836 

Website: www.doh.limpopo.gov.za 

Department of Public Works, Roads and 

Infrastructure 

MEC: Mr Jeremiah Ndou 

43 Church Street, Polokwane 0699 

Tel: +27 15 284 7000 

Website: www.dpw.limpopo.gov.za 

Department of Security, Safety and Liaison 

MEC: Ms Nandi Ndalane 

32 Schoeman Street, Polokwane 0699 

Tel: +27 15 290 7600 | Fax: +27 15 295 8979 

Website: www.dssl.limpopo.gov.za 

Department of Social Development 

MEC: Ms Joyce Mashamba 

18 College Street, Polokwane 0700 

Tel: +27 15 293 6027/04 | Fax: +27 15 293 6170/50 

Website: www.dsd.limpopo.gov.za 

Department of Sport, Arts and Culture 

MEC: Ms Oniccah Moloi 

Olympic Towers, 21 Biccard Street, Polokwane 0700 

Tel: +27 15 284 4009/8 | Fax: +27 15 284 4500 

Website: www.sac.limpopo.gov.za 

Department of Transport 

MEC: Ms Nandi Ndalane 

Pomoko Towers, cnr Bodenstein and Church Streets, Polokwane 

Tel: +27 15 295 1000 | Fax: +27 15 295 1163 

Website: www.ldot.limpopo.gov.za 

Provincial Treasury 

MEC: Mr Rob Tooley 

Ismini Towers, 46 Hans van Rensburg Street, Polokwane 0699 

Postal address: Private Bag X9486, Polokwane 0700 

Tel: +27 15 298 536 

Fax: +27 15 295 8873/7010 

Website: www.limtreasury.gov.za 


LISTING 

Limpopo Local Government 

A guide to the district and local municipalities in Limpopo. 

CAPRICORN DISTRICT MUNICIPALITY 

Physical address: 41 Biccard Street, Polokwane 0699 

Postal address: PO Box 4100, Polokwane 0700 

Tel: +27 15 294 1000 

Fax: +27 15 294 1292 

Website: www.cdm.org.za 

Blouberg Local Municipality 

Tel: +27 15 505 7100 | Fax: +27 15 505 0296 

Website: www.blouberg.gov.za 

Lepelle-Nkumpi Local Municipality 

Tel: +27 15 633 4500 | Fax: +27 15 633 6896 

Website: www.lepelle-nkumpi.gov.za 

Molemole Local Municipality 

Tel: +27 15 501 0243 | Fax: +27 15 501 0419 

Website: www.molemole.gov.za 

Polokwane Local Municipality 

Tel: +27 15 290 2100 | Fax: +27 15 290 2106 or 

086 608 0290 (SA only) 

Website: www.polokwane.gov.za 

MOPANI DISTRICT MUNICIPALITY 

Physical address: Government Building, Main Road, Giyani 0826 

Postal address: Private Bag X9687, Giyani 0826 

Tel: +27 15 811 6300 

Fax: +27 15 812 4301 

Website: www.mopani.gov.za 

Ba-Phalaborwa Local Municipality 

Tel: +27 15 780 6300 

Fax: +27 15 781 0726 

Website: www.ba-phalaborwa.gov.za 

Greater Giyani Local Municipality 

Tel: +27 15 811 5500 

Fax: +27 15 812 2068/1683 

Website: www.greatergiyani.gov.za 

Greater Letaba Local Municipality 

Tel: +27 15 309 9246 

Fax: +27 15 309 9419 

Website: www.greaterletaba.gov.za 

Greater Tzaneen Local Municipality 

Tel: +27 15 307 8000 

Fax: +27 15 307 8049/48 

Website: www.tzaneen.gov.za 

SEKHUKHUNE DISTRICT MUNICIPALITY 

Physical address: 3 Wes Street, Groblersdal 0470 

Postal address: Private Bag X8611, Groblersdal 0470 

Tel: +27 13 262 7300 

Fax: +27 13 262 5849 

Website: www.sekhukhune.gov.za 

Elias Motsoaledi Local Municipality 

Tel: +27 13 262 3056 | Fax: +27 13 262 2547/4530 

Website: www.eliasmotsoaledi.gov.za 

Ephraim Mogale Local Municipality 

Tel: +27 13 261 8400 | Fax: +27 13 261 2985 

Website: www.ephraimmogalelm.gov.za 

Fetakgomo-Greater Tubatse Local 

Municipality 

Tel: +27 15 622 8000 | Fax: +27 15 622 8026 

Website: www.fetakgomo.gov.za 

Makhuduthamaga Local Municipality 

Tel: +27 13 265 8600 | Fax: +27 13 265 1975/1076 

Website: www.makhuduthamaga.gov.za 

VHEMBE DISTRICT MUNICIPALITY 

Physical address: Old Parliament, Government Complex, 

Tusk Venda Street, Thohoyandou 0950 

Postal address: Private Bag X5006, Thohoyandou 0950 

Tel: +27 15 960 2000/2008 | Fax: +27 15 962 0904 

Website: www.vhembe.gov.za 


94

LISTING 

Makhado Local Municipality 

Tel: +27 15 519 300 | Fax: +27 15 516 1195 

Website: www.makhado.gov.za 

Musina Local Municipality 

Tel: +27 15 534 6100 | Fax: +27 15 534 2513 

Website: www.musina.gov.za 

Mutale Local Municipality 

Tel: +27 15 967 9600 | Fax: +27 15 967 9677/9654 

Website: www.mutale.gov.za 

Thulamela Local Municipality 

Tel: +27 15 962 7500 | Fax: +27 15 962 4020 

Website: www.thulamela.gov.za 

WATERBERG DISTRICT MUNICIPALITY 

Physical address: Harry Gwala Street, Modimolle 0510 

Postal address: Private Bag X1018, Modimolle 0510 

Tel: +27 14 718 3300 

Fax: +27 14 717 2931 

Website: www.waterberg.gov.za 

Bela-Bela Local Municipality 

Tel: +27 14 736 8000 | Fax: +27 14 736 3288 

Website: www.belabela.gov.za 

Lephalale Local Municipality 

Tel: +27 14 763 2193 

Fax: +27 14 763 5662/086 534 3440 

Website: www.lephalale.com 

Lim 368 Local Municipality 

Tel: +27 14 718 2000 | Fax: +27 14 717 4077 

Website: www.modimolle.gov.za 

Mogalakwena Local Municipality 

Tel: +27 15 491 9630 

Fax: +27 15 491 9755 

Website: www.mogalakwena.gov.za 

Thabazimbi Municipality 

Tel: +27 14 777 1525 

Fax: +27 14 777 1531 

Website: www.thabazimbi.gov.za 

MUNICIPALITIES IN LIMPOPO PROVINCE 

Musina 

Musina 

ZIMBABWE 

Metropolitan/District Municipality 

Boundary 

Local Municipality Boundary 

District Municipality 

Waterberg 

Local Municipality 

Lephalale 

BOTSWANA 

Thabazimbi 

Lephalale 

Lephalale 

Thabazimbi 

Waterberg 

Bele-Bela 

N11 

Mogalakwena 

Mookgophong 

Bela-Bela 

Lim 368 

Mokopane 

N1 

Modimolle 

Alldays 

Blouberg 

N11 

Capricorn 

Molemole 

R81 

N1 

Makhado 

POLOKWANE 

Polokwane 

Ephraim 

Mogale 

Makhado 

Lepele-Nkumpi 


Vhembe 

Tshipise 


Tzaneen 



Tubatse 

Sekhukhune 

Thohoyandou 

Thulamela 

Kruger 

R81 

National 

Area 

Greater Park 

Giyani 

Mopani 

Ba-Phalaborwa 

R40 

Maruleng 


Park District 

Management 

Phalaborwa 

Bushbuckridge 

MOZAMBIQUE 

Bohlabela 

(Cross-border 

Municipality) 


Park District 

Management 

Area 

North West 


Mpumalanga 

Gauteng 


PROFILE 

City of Polokwane 

Business opportunities on offer in multiple sectors. 

Polokwane is the capital of the Limpopo Province 

and the seat of the Provincial Legislature and Premier. 

It is centrally located in the Capricorn District and is 

the biggest urban centre in the province. 

Polokwane contributes 13% of the provincial GDP 

and is the province’s main centre for industry, commerce, 

education and medical services. It covers an 

area of 3 766km². 

The city lies on the N1 highway leading from 

Johannesburg to Zimbabwe, the Great North 

Road, and consequently logistics is a thriving sector. 

Polokwane International Airport handles an average 

of 3 700 aircraft, carrying 60 000 arriving and 

departing passengers a year. 

Polokwane is the most densely populated part of 

the Limpopo Province and the population of close 

to 800 000 provides a ready market for goods and 

services. The biggest economic sectors of the city 

currently are community and government services 

(32%), finance (23%) and wholesale and retail trade. 

Other significant sectors include transport and 

logistics, manufacturing and mining. 

The city is close to big concentrations of mineral deposits 

and to fertile agricultural lands; its industries 

reflect this diversity. Large industrial concerns such 

as Silicon Smelters (one of the biggest of its kind 

in the world) and a big brewery run alongside at 

least 600 industrial enterprises of a smaller scale. The 

range is broad, thus helping to protect Polokwane 

from downturns in the economic cycle: soft drink 

and fruit juice manufacture; confectionery; bricks; 

clothing; meat processing; packaging; jewellery. 

Nearby agricultural citrus estates send their products 

to Polokwane for processing, as do the potato and 

tomato farmers who plant on a large scale in the 

district. The strong retail sector was strengthened 

even more with the opening of the Mall of the North. 

This major project cost approximately R1.2-billion 

to complete. Covering more than 70 000 square 

metres, the mall offers a more convenient alternative 

to shoppers used to doing their monthly shopping 

in Johannesburg. 

Polokwane has good hotel and conferencing facilities, 

and is well situated as a starting point for tourism 

trips into the province and beyond. The newly 

opened 160-room Park Inn by Radisson Polokwane 

is an indication of investor confidence in the city. 

Garden Court Polokwane is an example of a hotel 

that forms part of a national group, in this case, 

Tsogo Sun. 

Nearby Moria attracts up to a million people every 

year, when the Zion Christian Church celebrates 

Easter. 

Polokwane has a number of impressive art galleries 

and historical buildings. The city has its own 

game reserve and the Peter Mokaba Stadium – a 

2010 Soccer World Cup venue – regularly hosts big 

football matches and events. Polokwane falls in a 

summer rainfall area. The average temperature is 

17°C and the average annual rainfall is 598mm 


96

Identified investment opportunities 

Pre-feasibility studies and partners are sought for 

a range of investment opportunities across several 

sectors. 

Manufacturing 

To address complete backward and forward linkages 

from farmers to the consumers, the following 

facilities are required: 

• Collection Centres 

• Logistics Support Facilities 

• Terminal Market Centre 

• Other Support Facilities 

The Polokwane International Airport could also be 

used to transport high-value produce internationally. 

Logistics 

Agri-Logistics Hub: will manage the logistics of agricultural 

produce and agri-processed products in and 

near the Agri-Processing Park. It will include road, air 

and rail options, which will provide further opportunity 

to develop air cargo facilities at Polokwane 

International Airport. 

Truck Stop and Filling Station: a dedicated truck 

stop should include a full range of services focussed 

on truck maintenance and driver support. 

Air cargo: four blocks of hangars with four hangars 

in each block could be converted to cargo storage 

facilities. There are currently no storage facilities at 

the airport. Each hangar offers approximately 540m² 

of floor space. Air cargo facilities will open new international 

trade markets for products from the city of 

Polokwane, Capricorn District and Limpopo Province. 

This may allow the local trade market to diversify. 

Retirement precinct 

The Retirement Village Housing will provide housing 

for a large number of retirees who will require many 

services. In addition, it will provide housing to those 

who are physically and mentally handicapped within 

special care units. 

This will have to be supported by a business complex 

where doctors, specialists and other medical personnel 

can operate and a retail area where residents of 

the retirement village can purchase groceries and 

other goods. 

• Retirement village housing 

• Retirement village business complex 

• Private fragile care centre 

• Special needs care units 

PROFILE 

Education 

Polokwane has a much better educated adult population 

in 2015 than that of Capricorn and Limpopo. 

Some 19.34% of Polokwane’s population had Grade 

12, a certificate, or diploma, compared to Capricorn’s 

15.5% and Limpopo’s 13.76%. In addition, 10.54% 

of Polokwane’s population had higher education 

compared to Capricorn’s 7.6% and Limpopo’s 5.1%. 

• Private schools 

• Special needs schools 

• Student housing 

Tourism 

Medical tourism packages: with hospital and medical 

staff who specialise in the medical requirements 

of the aged, physically and mentally handicapped, 

Polokwane can develop medical tourism with 

specific focus on these areas. This in turn will increase 

transport to and from Polokwane, including 

increased air passenger demand at Polokwane 

International Airport and accommodation for these 

persons in places such as hotels, frail care and 

recovery centres. 

The School of Medicine is a relatively newly established 

school within the Faculty of Health Sciences 

of the University of Limpopo, located just outside 

Polokwane. Additional tourism investment 

opportunities include: 

• Hotel 

• Wedding venue development 

CONTACT INFO 

Postal address: Polokwane Municipality, 

PO Box 111, Polokwane Civic Centre 

Tel: +27 15 290 2495 | Fax: +27 15 290 2009 

Email: economist@polokwane.gov.za 

Website: www.polokwane.gov.za 


LISTING 

INDEX 

Black Management Forum.................................................................................................................................... 83 

De Beers Group of Companies – Venetia Mine.............................................................................. 47 - 53 

Exxaro Resources Limited....................................................................................................................................... 56 

Great North Transport.............................................................................................................................................IFC 

Implats................................................................................................................................................................................ 58 

IvanPlats............................................................................................................................................................................ 54 

LEDA Enterprise Development and Finance Division .......................................................................... 24 

Leeto la Polokwane...................................................................................................................................12, 64 - 67 

Limpopo Connexion...................................................................................................................................... 26 - 28 

Limpopo Economic Development Agency (LEDA) ............................................................................... 10 

Limpopo Office of the Premier ..............................................................................................................................8 

Masisizane Fund........................................................................................................................................................... 80 

Nedbank...........................................................................................................................................................7, 32 , OBC 

Old Mutual............................................................................................................................................................ 34 - 37 

Park Inn by Radisson Polokwane ............................................................................................................... 5, 89 

Polokwane Chamber of Business ..................................................................................................................... 82 

Polokwane Municipality .................................................................................................................................. 13, 94 

Risima Housing Finance Company..........................................................................................................29 - 31 

Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF)...............................................................................................................3 

Vodacom.........................................................................................................................................................70 - 75, IBC 


98

Contact us on +27 15 495 0645 or LIMVodacombusiness@vodacom.co.za

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