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The Department of Provincial and Local Government, together with the departments of Social Development, Agriculture, Environmental Affairs and Tourism, and Arts, Culture, Science and Technology, is hosting an LED Trade Fair between the 3rd and 5th of October 2001, at the All Africa Museum, Newtown, Johannesburg. The Trade Fair will exhibit over eighty municipal-level job creation and poverty alleviation projects that have been initiated through government's annual R1 billion Poverty Alleviation programme. The participating national governments have programmes such as National Landcare, Enabling Technologies, Tourism Development, Social Development and Working for Water that support the mutually reinforcing objectives of job creation, rural development, urban development and the targeting of the poor and disadvantaged.

The Department of Provincial and Local Government has taken the lead in the initiative given its management of key government delivery programmes such as the LED Fund and the Consolidated Municipal Infrastructure Programme. Together these two programmes invest more than R1 billion per annum into municipal driven service and infrastructure delivery. These government programmes are supporting the process of local government transformation that is currently underway in South Africa. They demonstrate the need for new leadership and innovation at a local level and the capacity for local partnerships to deliver. They also demonstrate the importance of co-operative governance amongst all three spheres of government if local government is to successfully deliver.

For example, the LED Fund boasts that through the R39 million allocation in 1999/2000, the following outputs have been delivered: A total of 76 512 person days of employment were generated through the 1999/2000 LEDF. Of the total number of people employed (5 888), 30% were women. This is below the 50% target of the LEDF. 61% of people employed through LEDF projects were during the construction stages of the project. The remaining number of 2567 people has received long-term employment. This means that on average one long-term job created by the LEDF has cost approximately R15 000.00.

A total number of 6 936 person days of training has resulted from the 1999/2000 LEDF. Almost two-thirds of this training is accredited. A total of 2 089 people received on-the-job training. Of these 53% were women.

Almost R24 million of the R39 million (61%) transferred for projects was spent on infrastructure in the form of equipment and tools and buildings. 8% or R3.18 million was regarded as direct support to SMMEs in terms of subsidised equipment and rentals.

Local economic development, based on locally appropriate strategies, and supported through the implementation of government programmes at national and provincial level, is regarded as a key and desired outcome of developmental local government. Municipalities have a Constitutional mandate to promote social and economic development. The major objectives of government's involvement in LED are: job creation, rural development, urban renewal, and the targeting of the disadvantaged.

Municipalities are required to plan for LED within their Integrated Development Plans. A Local Economic Regeneration Study will form the core of the municipal IDP, and will ensure that municipal LED strategies are based on a thorough and informed understanding of the local economy. Municipalities are encouraged to focus on the identification of local assets, natural resources and opportunities, rather that expend all their energies on 'smokestack chasing' of possible external investments. The fact that LED is integrated within the IDP, or business plan, of the municipality implies that the municipality must shift budgetary and other resources towards these ends.

The LED Trade Fair showcases successful examples of stimulating economic or business activity at a local level in a manner that reinforces government's objectives for LED. Many of the projects demonstrate unique business opportunity identification such as: liquorice production, charcoal production, spirulina production, agro-processing and the marketing and development of local tourism assets.

What the Trade Fair also demonstrates is that LED is successfully driven if it is based on community participation and the formation and nurturing of local partnerships. Municipalities are a key stakeholder within LED given their Constitutional mandate and their roles as landowners, property developers, procurement agents, service and infrastructure providers locally. However, equally important are other stakeholders such as the private sector, civil society institutions and labour. The projects demonstrate a wide variety of partnerships - municipal-community partnerships, public-private partnerships and public-public partnerships. All these partnerships add value in terms of leveraging further investment, technological input, market access and capacity building. The LED Trade Fair, therefore, is an event that celebrates government delivery, in terms of the successful implementation of a wide range of government poverty alleviation programmes, the improvement in the quality of life for project beneficiaries and their families, co operative governance, and government's commitment at all levels to LED.

Issued by: Department of Provincial and Local Government, 26 September 2001