The Polokwane Municipality in Limpopo has announced several ambitious development projects, aimed at repositioning the city as a strategic venue on the subcontinent.

Releasing details of the plans at an awards ceremony in Polokwane at the weekend, Executive Mayor Mr Thabo Makunyane said the city had succeeded in attracting large investors in recent years, who had given impetus to the creation of services and infrastructure, on which new development plans could be built.

The creation of a so-called inter-modal transport hub, which would include the international airport, the railway station and a proposed heavy vehicle transit area, would be the first step.

"We will also tender to become the United Nations logistical depot for the Sub-Saharan region. The achievement of this target will stimulate food production and the manufacturing industries," said Mr Makunyane.

An international conference centre, to accommodate Nepad, Southern African Development Community (SADC) and other summits in Polokwane, would form another component of the overall development strategy, and be linked to the construction of a complex of international sporting facilities.

He added that the possibility of setting up a major trading area, with convenient customs clearance facilities, as well as a research centre to ensure the competitiveness of products, were also in the pipeline.

Mr Makunyane has recommended that feasibility and impact studies in respect of all these projected developments should commence without any delays.

He also announced that efforts to create an Africa Market in the city, where locals as well as traders from neighbouring countries could sell their goods and products, were progressing well.