7 days ago
Nelson Mandela Bay civil society group calls for conference to avert economic crisis in metro
The Civil Society Coalition of Nelson Mandela Bay has urged Eastern Cape premier Oscar Mabuyane and the presidency to urgently organise a rescue conference to discuss how an economic collapse can be averted in the metro.
This follows the imminent closure of the Goodyear plant in Kariega, US tariffs that threaten the industrial economy, and political instability at City Hall which has led to chronic service delivery failures.
On Monday, the coalition stated that a new social compact was needed to consolidate the input generated by civil society, which would be binding across all levels of government.
'We need a proactive economic and industrialisation strategy that broadens the value chains that underpin our economy and builds on the metro's existing human and natural assets.
'This metro cannot afford to lose another industrial anchor, more so that we are already advised of others that are in line to potentially close,' the statement said.
According to the coalition, the US tariffs pose a danger to the industrial economy of the Bay and have placed thousands of jobs at risk.
The new 30% tariff rate kicked in August after a trade deal could not be reached.
'The tariffs will also serve to have a domino effect on other industries, as we seek new markets in competition with other countries similarly impacted.
'Any disruption to trade relations with the US will have a devastating ripple effect across supply chains, communities and households already battling high levels of poverty and unemployment.'
It said the impact of the closure of Goodyear stretched far beyond the employees of the plant, but would affect small businesses and surrounding sectors.
'This signals a deepening social and economic crisis,' the statement said.
Goodyear announced in June that 907 jobs were on the line when it winds down its manufacturing operations in the country.
The group has also hit out against political governance in the city.
'The direct consequence of the misgovernance and mismanagement on the political and economic front, social depravation and decline , specifically in the form of murder, syndicated theft of infrastructure, substance abuse, interpersonal abuse, and neighbourhood gangs, plague the people of our metro.
'We are counted among the top-ranking murder cities in the world.
'It is a crisis our leadership seem to blind themselves to and we call for a sense of urgency among the non-state formations, working with a willing government at all levels,' the coalition said.
It has called on the government to take the necessary action to enable a sustainable economy by securing a low-carbon and stable electricity supply to the metro.
This, they said, could be done by bringing in industrial and trade policy certainty for green hydrogen, electric vehicles, grid supply, wheeling of renewable energy, manganese exportation and beneficiation of raw minerals.
Other suggestions included leveraging the national public employment programmes to aid cleanup, tourism and community safety, and returning the ports to optimal functionality.
The Herald
