Cape Town still has lowest unemployment figures

STATEMENT BY THE CITY’S MAYORAL COMMITTEE MEMBER FOR ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES AND ASSET MANAGEMENT, ALDERMAN JAMES VOS

I have noted the unemployment figures in the Quarterly Labour Force Survey for the third quarter of 2020. I welcome the fact that Cape Town still has the lowest expanded unemployment rate of all metros at 29,1%. Read more below:

The strategic plans the City has put in place have seen significant investment and job creation over the last six months and my priority is getting our economy back to business and our residents back to work.

Between April and September 2020, the City’s Strategic Business Partners (SBPs) collectively facilitated R8,8 billion worth of investment, created 4 980 jobs and trained 1 366 people, despite the various stages of lockdown and economic downturn we have faced.

A key component of the Economic Action Plan (EAP), developed by the Economic Task Team I set up to respond to the impact of the lockdown on our economy, was to ensure that our SBPs pivoted their plans and used the funding from the City to support businesses.

What has become clear, is that the City’s EAP is the best chance for economic readiness and recovery because it is working.

Cape Town has a very strong investment ecosystem precisely because our SBPs attract the investors. The Investment Facilitation Unit, within the City’s Enterprise and Investment Department, in turn makes sure that they have a smooth landing in the City.

The strategies implemented and the collective achievements by our SBPs proves that where there is a will, there is a way to plot a sustainable path to economic recovery.