THE Alexandra Renewal Project's economic development programme will enhance the stability and growth prospects of the township and nearby areas like Wynberg, Kew, Louis Botha Avenue, Marlboro South and Frankenwald.

Miriam Altman, convener of the ARP's economic programme, says Alexandra suffers from the historical exclusions typical of townships in business relationships and access to training, information and finance.

"But Alex is one of the few townships that is well established, with a wide range of businesses. Although there are hundreds of businesses in Alex, people are underemployed."

Integrating the greater Alexandra region into the vision articulated by Johannesburg 2030 is a central aim. Altman says Alexandra's neglect has been eating at the value of nearby areas, resulting in minimal reinvestment.

"Integrating the area and the people into the opportunities available in Gauteng is a fundamental objective, representing an important mindshift," she says.

"We want to create a positive, dynamic relationship between residents, workers and firms with the rest of the economy."

The ARP mapped out what different people already do in the entire Wynberg-Alexandra-Marlboro area and matched it to growth sectors in the economy.

Six sectors have been identified for promotion: retail and personal services; construction; auto services; tourism and hospitality; business process outsourcing; and care industries.

"We will offer a complementary set of support measures, including business development, workforce training and building representative stakeholder forums," she says.

"We're linking education and training delivery to the needs of local business. We are forging links with relevant sector education and training authorities (Setas). The first is with Merseta for training in motor repair."

To support the clusters, a local business service centre is being established, in co-operation with Open for Business and Johannesburg Metro.

An employment centre, implemented in co-operation with the labour department, will offer services to work-seekers.

"We were able to award the co-ordination of sector promotion, the employment centre and the business development centre to consortiums led by Alex-based professionals. They saw the opportunity, brought consortiums together, and have won on the basis of capability," says Altman. "The advantage is that they already know the lie of the land, they know who's around and they know each other."

The economic development programme is also involved in a range of site developments. The flagship is the Pan Africa Triangle, a 12ha area between Alexandra and Wynberg being redeveloped into a taxi facility and commercial and retail facilities.

There is support for a city improvement district in Wynberg, upgrading in Kew and Louis Botha Avenue, and developing an integrated business process outsourcing site in Frankenwald.

Feb 26 2004 08:01:28:000AM Business Day 1st Edition