Army of volunteers driving revolution in Nelson Mandela Bay

The Nelson Mandela Bay Business Chamber’s 160th anniversary this year was not just a recognition of longevity, but a celebration of what has been achieved in a revolutionary shift in the traditional role of a business chamber, from passive to active and harnessing the power of collaboration and volunteerism. 

The chamber’s revolutionary shift — from being the voice of business, mostly on the sidelines, to rolling up our sleeves and actively driving change — began more than three years ago, and 2024 has been the year where our efforts have truly gained traction.

The guiding principle that underpins everything we do is to retain and attract investment and jobs in the Bay, in the interests of creating a better future for our local economy and our greatest asset of all — our people.

The change is unstoppable now, thanks to the active involvement of the local business community who believe in the potential of the Bay of Opportunity and have shown incredible commitment in volunteering their time and expertise to make a difference.

Our aim is not to take over the work of the government, but to work with them, collaboratively and constructively rather than confrontationally, to resolve problems and build capacity, grounded in the belief that progress is a shared responsibility. 

We have found willing and dedicated collaborators within the municipality, the Eastern Cape Development Corporation, state- owned enterprises such as Eskom, law enforcement and other authorities, prepared to accept business’s offer of expertise and technical support and implement solutions. 

This is not to say all is rosy in the Bay and all problems are fixed.

Critical challenges around reliable electricity supply, infrastructure maintenance, logistics inefficiencies, safety and security have not gone away, and persuading some officials or agencies to get out of their silos and work together with business is not always easy. 

However, we are convinced that more is achieved by being part of the solution than by complaining from the sidelines, and the progress achieved this year demonstrates that, in these few examples of many:

• Our sanitation technical task team collaborating with the municipality to effect an improvement of the efficiency rate of the sanitation system from 15% to over 80%;
• The electricity technical task team of engineers from business, Eskom and the municipality is collaborating area by area to address electricity infrastructure issues which cause unplanned power outages;
• Our renewable energy cluster initiative is well on track, with the solar portion expected to come on stream later next year and wind in 2026. By the end of this year, 18 manufacturers in the Bay would have signed up for this shared renewable energy generation facility;
• Through our safety and security task team and the geographic clusters, with collaboration from law enforcement and private security companies, safety and security has been stepped up in several areas with the installation of cameras, monitoring and patrolling, securing electricity substations, and collaboration and information-sharing;
• The growth in our geographic clusters to 11, all led and supported by business leaders in the Bay who are stepping up to make a difference to issues such as cleaning, safety, illegal dumping, street lighting, traffic lights and road markings;
• The launch of our Trade and Investment Desk to proactively market the Bay of Opportunity and identify investment and job creation opportunities. Currently, we are tracking 13 potential investment opportunities for the Bay;
• The entrenchment of our Local Economy Reinvention Think Tank as the platform to proactively identify opportunities to retain, diversify and grow our manufacturing sector. Seven potential projects are currently under investigation; and
• Our Entrepreneurship Desk achieving the milestone of more than 350 registered members benefiting from a one-stop hub for support, information on opportunities, training and mentorship.

We established partnerships with a number of national organisations to ensure that the challenges and opportunities in the Bay are firmly on the national agenda. 

 Organisations, businesses and stakeholders in other parts of the country are asking how we do it, and our Bay of Opportunity message has been embraced by the local business community and national stakeholders, and is gaining increased prominence on a national level.

This is happening because of a willingness among local business leaders to adopt a growth mindset and to embrace positive action as the way forward.

It is all about choice — we can either choose to become victims of all the negativity around us or we can put our personal agendas aside and choose to work together for the greater good of our local economy and community.

A great indicator that we are making a difference, and that business is keen to join the momentum, is that the business chamber signed up a record 125 new member businesses this year.

In mounting a court challenge to the unfair rezoning of the Bay in respect of the fuel price, and the unjustifiable proposed 43.55% electricity tariff hike, we demonstrate that we are unafraid to tackle authority on behalf of business, consumers and the most vulnerable in our community.

Our milestone 160th anniversary highlights the value of innovation, bold leadership and collaboration in adapting to the future.

Let’s continue to mobilise, collaborate and take action as we radically shift from evolution to revolution to unlock the potential of the Bay of Opportunity.

Denise van Huyssteen is the chief executive of the Nelson Mandela Bay Business Chamber.

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