Limpopo Business 2017-18 edition

SPECIAL FEATURE
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
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