Today Wesgro CEO Tim Harris delivered an address at the launch of Albany Bakeries’ R350 million expansion in Bellville, Cape Town.
More than 100 jobs have been created by this expansion, with the bakery now employing over 400 people.
As Cape Town and the Western Cape's official tourism, trade and investment promotion agency, Wesgro has been doing all it can to boost investment into the province and increase exports, contributing to the economic growth of the region and the country.
Over the past three years Wesgro has facilitated a number of expansions in industries such as manufacturing, infrastructure, real estate, textiles and film. These expansions have attracted over R2 billion in foreign direct investment and created over 1 000 jobs for the province.
"Albany Bakeries’ major expansion is a welcomed investment, and a sign of confidence in the Cape economy. We intend to do everything we can to maintain confidence in the economy so that even more projects like these come to fruition. We warmly welcome Tiger Brands announcement that they will be investing over R800 million in the Western Cape," said Wesgro CEO Tim Harris.
A recent survey conducted by Wesgro found that three quarters of companies surveyed had a positive perception of Cape Town as a base to do business in Africa and noted the city's sophisticated infrastructure as a draw card. Of the companies that intended to expand into Africa, a quarter indicated they would opt to run their African regional headquarters in Cape Town.
Later this month Wesgro will open the Cape Investor Centre, a new one-stop shop in conjunction with the DTI's InvestSA initiative where large investors can easily complete local, provincial and national regulatory processes in a single location facilitated by Wesgro.
“We encourage businesses looking to expand in the Cape to visit the centre and take advantage of all the resources it will have to offer,” concluded Harris.
