DURBAN - ZULULAND District Municipality said the opening of Babanango Game Reserve next year will boost the district economy and create job opportunities.
The municipality hosted a business breakfast at the Elangeni Hotel in Durban on Thursday, which was attended by business heavyweights including AmaZulu FC owner Sandile Zungu, Ithala Bank chief executive Pearl Bengu, the Public Investment Corporation and Boxer Stores, among others. The keynote address was delivered by Inkosi Mangosuthu Buthelezi.
Zululand mayor Thulasizwe Buthelezi hailed the breakfast as a success, adding that the R60 million investment would be realised as a result of the engagements that took place at the breakfast. He said more than 30 Zululand companies were linked to national and international companies, as far as Germany, who had flown out just to attend.
He said it was important to bring the breakfast to Durban where there are big businesses and also to put Zululand on a national map. The mayor said the newly built Babanango Game Reserve was one of the projects the municipality signed the memorandum of understanding with.
Chief executive Jeffrey van Straden said his game reserve would open next year and create full-time employment for 250 people, excluding opportunities that are going to be created during the phases of construction.
He said his company had already spent R5 million assisting poor communities affected by the looting in July and Covid-19, even before starting operations, which is something he is proud of.
The mayor said the political stability in his district ensured that not a single shop was looted during the unrest and said this showed that his district was a good place to do business. The mayor further announced the revamping of Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi airport and said there would be three flights a week from Joburg straight to the airport.
Delivering the keynote address, Inkosi Buthelezi said during his time as prime minister of the then KwaZulu government, he had worked to secure the development of Zululand and the greater KwaZulu-Natal, adding that his concern for the country’s economy led him to openly disagree with his leaders in the ANC who began calling for international sanctions and disinvestment from the country.
“It was this as well as my rejection of an armed Struggle that led to the most painful chapter of my life. The stand I took for our economy and our people, made me the target of more than a decade of vilification,” said Buthelezi.
Daily News