Eastern Cape Business 2016 edition

PROFILE Border-Kei

PROFILE Border-Kei Chamber of Business Border-Kei Chamber of Business provides key services to over 700 member organisations, and aims to be the ‘voice of business’ in the area. Value proposition To be the ‘voice of business’ promoting an environment for growth and sustainability through maintaining strong, proactive relations with both internal and external stakeholders, including provincial and local government, member companies, other business organisations and organised labour. Geographic areas of operation Border-Kei Chamber of Business (BKCOB) has offices in East London and Queenstown which serve the greater Border-Kei region. Services and benefits to members BKCOB offers the following key services to member companies: • Member listing – After joining, members receive the member listing as part of their package. • Border-Kei Chamber of Business Membership Certificate – Members receive a personalised membership certificate at a new members’ induction and networking event. • New members’ induction and networking functions – The chamber holds six new members’ induction and networking functions annually, and these provide a valuable informal but structured opportunity to meet a broad range of businesspeople. • Letters of support – The chamber gladly provides letters of support to members trying to access government tenders, and letters of introduction to chambers in other centres for members attempting to expand their business footprint, whether provincially, nationally or globally. • Business Hi-Lite Magazine – This glossy B2B magazine is distributed monthly free-of-charge to all members, and keeps them in touch with chamber activities and developments in the area. • Trade & Information desk – Assists members with all their exporting and importing needs. • Investbuffalocity.com – A collaborative initiative where members can find various economic information on Buffalo City. It provides a platform to attract international investors, as well as provide exposure for local companies. • Committees – The chamber has a robust and effective committee system to facilitate members’ participation, and to enable the chamber to fulfil its role as the ‘voice of business’. Turnover BKCOB represents over 700 member organisations that generate an estimated annual turnover of R69-billion, and that employ some 52 000 people who earn an estimated annual income of R18-billion in total. KEY CONTACTS Les Holbrook, Executive Director Tish Holbrook, Head: Trade and Information Drayton Brown, Head: Communications Tel: +27 43 743 8438 Fax: +27 43 748 1507 Email: info@bkcob.co.za or communications@bkcob.co.za Physical address: Chamber House, The Hub, Beacon Bay, Bonza Bay Road, East London 5241 Postal address: Postnet Suite 36, Private Bag X3, Beacon Bay 5205 Website: www.bkcob.co.za Please contact Alana Velida or Tish Holbrook on members@bkcob.co.za or 043 743 8438 to join. EASTERN CAPE BUSINESS 2016 26

INTERVIEW FOCUS Promoting business in the region Les Holbrook, Executive Director of the Border-Kei Chamber of Business (BKCOB), highlights the reasons that investors should look no further than the Eastern Cape. What are some of the Chamber’s highlights for the past year? We keep the priorities on the agenda – and key issues such as the port expansion, revitalisation of Latimer’s Landing and refurbishment of the old Buffalo Bridge are just a few. Some more important issues are pressing local authorities to step up programmes for key infrastructure and maintenance. We have initiated a working group for education – focusing on teacher support and technical subjects. Undertaking a pilot project with Merrifield School has been hugely exciting and has been attracting interest from a range of stakeholders. Lastly, a focus area for the chamber recently has been on corporate social responsibility and investment, and how serious contributors can not only make a difference but how they can benefit best from their own contribution. In your view, what are the most compelling reasons for an international businessperson to invest in the Eastern Cape? We still have a superb quality of life. Lifestyle amounts to a very important factor. Great schools and medical facilities rank very high in choosing an investment destination. We still claim to be the 10-minute city, and despite lots of contrary claims, our lower crime rate, our labour force and our business environment is the best in the country. We also have the East London Industrial Development Zone with a world-class Science and Technology Park. What do you regard as the biggest obstacle or challenge that regional businesses face at present? Every single citizen agrees we need a vibrant and strong economy with growth of 4% at least. Although we still have a great business environment – the ability of both the public sector and civil society to embrace business and understand and accept how important business is remains a challenge. Political instability continues to plague most sectors of our society, and one wishes that we could leave politics to the politicians. Also, if society would be more focused on their responsibilities, we would have a more accountable society. Les Holbrook BIOGRAPHY Les Holbrook has a National Technical Certifi cate as well as a Certifi cate in Management from Rhodes University. Prior to his appointment as the Executive Director of the Border-Kei Chamber of Business, he was the Deputy General Manager of Beier Industries of Transkei and Executive Director of the Transkei Chamber of Industries. 27 EASTERN CAPE BUSINESS 2016