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Speech by the Executive Mayor Advocate Lentswe Mokgatle Sanlam, Mogale Chamber of Commerce and Industry Business Achievers Awards for 2003 Thursday 11 March 2004 Misty Hills, Muldersdrift
Mr. John Olivier It is commendable to see the business community gathered together in this manner to encourage one another in being the most outstanding businesses in the city. The business achievers awards are organized to acknowledge companies that contribute to society and the community of Mogale City, Human Resources Development and promoting good employee relations. Our companies should be the best to work for in Mogale City. The challenge for businesses today is to look beyond the bottomline. Businesses should continuously improve their relationship with all stakeholders including the community. In fact successful companies have a healthy relationship with customers, shareholders, community and employees. These are the four pillars that make successful 21st century companies. Last year, the JSE Security Exchange's Deputy CEO announced that the bourse will look at introducing a Social Responsibility Index which would bring us in line with good corporate governance principles. The King II Report positions South Africa as a frontrunner when it comes to good corporate governance. Judge Mervyn King and his team have given us guidelines to adhere to help us manage and grow business that looks at the triple bottomline. The triple bottomline being your community and social responsibility, financial and environmental aspects of the business. Our businesses have to follow these guidelines and effectively build companies that subscribe to good corporate governance. Our President Thabo Mbeki has also put South Africa in the map, as he was one of the visionaries and writers of the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD). We have an opportunity as Mogale City business chamber to embrace NEPAD and explore markets outside of South Africa and Mogale City. NEPAD offers the business community to work with government to support development and fight poverty. NEPAD also puts the corporate governance spotlight on government in this context called peer review. Let us work together to build good companies that promote excellence in customer service and good corporate citizenship. We also want government that creates conducive environment for business to flourish. Let's get together and work. My submission is that government and business must work together to make a meaningful contribution to our communities. In the spirit of the Growth and Development Summit, we can implement those commitments within our local area. If you want to grow your markets and customer base, it is imperative that the customer base is employed or working. Then customers would have disposable income. Together, we have to look at projects that would create jobs and also build communities that could consume products. But most importantly we should create entrepreneurs from our communities. That is our ultimate goal. Mogale City should produce entrepreneurs that could break new ground in the market. Let us live the South African and Mogale City brand, which is a people full of creativity and excelling in all that they do. We should also remember that 2004, is the historic milestone for us as country and a city. We will celebrate 10 Years of Democracy and Freedom as a city. We want to invite the business community to join us in festivities from 23 April to 27 April 2004. We will be hosting overseas visitors and mayors from the United States of America, United Kingdom, Australia and local mayors. On Monday 26 April, Mr. Johnny Cochran shall be delivering an inaugural Human Rights Lecture at a luncheon at the Centenary Hall. The same day Mr. Cochran shall be a guest speaker at a Special sitting of the Council and he will also address the Mogale City Local Youth Forum. On Tuesday 27 April, we shall have a Carnival that shall end at Coronation Park to celebrate and mark our 10 Years of Freedom and Democracy. An exhibition will be running from the 23 April 4 to 27 April 2004, for companies to be part of these celebrations. We would like the private sector to take part in the festivities and welcome suggestions from you on how we can celebrate this historic moment. I now want to employ you as business people that you continue excelling in what you do. Grow your markets and customer base but at the same time contribute meaningfully to our communities. My challenge to you is to support SMMEs. How do you design your procurement in such a way that SMMEs can have opportunities to do business? Can you involve SMMEs as subcontractors? Some of these measures can uplift SMMEs by transferring skills and offering them an opportunity to grow. I want to congratulate all the winners in the respective categories. Well done for being exemplary. It is my pleasure to welcome all of you to Mogale City and also to the eight Mogale Chamber of Commerce and Industry Business Achievers Awards banquet. Mogale City is the city where ordinary people do extraordinary things. Thank you.
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