On my return to London I wanted to express on behalf of the World Free Zone Convention our warm appreciation of the encouragement, support and enthusiasm which the DTI brought to the holding of the World Free Zone Convention in Cape Town, South Africa.

 

We were particularly pleased in two dimensions: first, that the dti have successfully established the Pan-African Free Zone Association, with a great deal of support from the delegates who came together in Cape Town; and second that all the signs from the Convention are that free zones can play a very significant contribution to economic advance both in South Africa and across the continent.

 

It was a personal pleasure to meet the leaders of the dti and to see the effectiveness of their work both in promoting a very successful economy in South Africa and in taking an important leadership role across the continent.

 

I know that this is much admired in London and we are all here eager to assist whenever we can and have brought it to the attention of those formulating the programme of the G8 next year.

 

We hope to keep in close touch with all delegates to Cape Town and very much look forward to providing opportunities to keep the global free zone community informed of the pan-African development, and in particular look forward to welcoming delegates to join us in Turkey in April next year and also at next year's Fifth Anniversary World Free Zone Convention.

 

With kind regards and all good wishes.

 

Graham Mather

 

 

A meeting took place over the period of the Convention to launch this important initiative for the future prosperity of Africa's Free and Special Economic Zones, Industrial Development Zones and Export Processing Zones.

    THE EXHIBITION AND SPECIAL ACTIVITIES

	EXHIBITION   The following exhibitors were present throughout the Convention: Berco Express City of Tshwane (Pretoria) Coega Development Corporation Department of Trade and Industry Department of Trade and Industry SMME East London Industrial Development Zone fDi - FTBusiness, UK Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) JAFZA/JAFZI, United Arab Emirates ONNE Oil and Gas Free Zone, Nigeria Textiles Intelligence Limited, UK WESGRO (Western Cape Province Trade & Investment Agency) WFZC Courses and Training Division, UK
	The IPAWorld - Oxford Intelligence 2004 WEBSITE AWARDS   The two independent judges viewed the short list of four finalists in each category (see Website Awards page for Category details) and noted that many sites have been recently updated and improved. This year's winners are:   Category One Winner ESBAS - Aegean Free Zone www.esbas.com.tr Runner Up COEGA Development Corporation www.coega.co.za Category Two Winner Kenya Export Processing Zones Authority www.epzakenya.com Runner Up City of Tshwane (Pretoria) www.tshwane.gov.za   More information and photographs of the presentations will be posted shortly. Special congratulations to Kenya who have won their category two year's running.
	Publications fDi   Foreign Direct Investment Magazine (FT Business) published a lengthy article by Claude Baissac focusing on the value of Free Zones in Developing Countries to coincide with the Convention (see the Free Zone pages on the fdi website www.fdimagazine.com)
	A special edition of SOUTH AFRICA   the Quarterly Journal for Trade Partner and Investors of The Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) also appeared in time for the Convention.
	The Annual AGM of WEPZA   (World Economic Processing Zones Association) was be held on the Sunday following the Convention. Members lunched at the top of Table Mountain, just outside Cape Town.

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    Speakers

A very warm thank you to all those who gave of their time to be with us in Cape Town and who prepared so much useful material for the Two Day Conference as well as the Courses and Training.

    Success for the WFZC Courses & Training

Our specialist training division goes from strength to strength. Building on the success of workshops held in London and Cairo, the South Africa convention kicked off with a three-day programme of training courses, each specially developed for the free zone sector.

Delegates from Africa, Europe, Asia and the Caribbean gathered at the exclusive Cullinan Hotel to attend training modules which included Investment Promotion, Investor Retention, Marketing, Public Relations, Outsourcing and Operations Management.

Led by expert trainers from Business Location International, Buck Consultants and The Services Group, the training offered a unique opportunity for free zone operators and senior personnel from the public and private sector to learn together and gain essential knowledge in a highly-focused environment.

The training division’s next programme of courses will be held in Izmir, Turkey on 19 and 20 April 2005. This is a not-to-be-missed opportunity for you to enhance your skills and knowledge in areas that are vital to the success of zones. Contact us for more details, and mark it in your diary now!

Karen Oram, WFZC Courses & Training Director

    Convention Stakeholders