Phikwe / Tsumeb in twinning process
Onalenna Kelebeile | Thursday June 18, 2015 15:07
The council’s Local Economic Development committee chairperson councillor Dorcus Letlhogela said the council should explore a possible strategic partnership with Tsumeb because of striking similarities between the two towns.
When briefing councillors recently she said that a lot of lessons could be learnt from the fact that Tsumeb’s copper mine was decommissioned in 1998 and the town was perceived a dying town hence investors moved out.
In the same way Selebi–Phikwe is working on diversifying the economy of the town so as not to rely on the mine. Letlhogela said as the administrative local authority Selebi-Phikwe Town Council (SPTC) considers partnerships with other local and international municipalities an imperative. “By virtue of being a government’s focal point of policy and operational matters at local level, councils need to embrace a culture of continuous improvement in the way they execute their mandate,” she said.
She said SPTC, in collaboration with SPEDU, has formulated the Local Economic Development Strategy Framework and one of their goals is to establish sustainable strategic partnerships with other cities and towns around the world.
She also said that with the advent of globalisation and emergence of new socio-economic challenges, there is a need for councils to go beyond their traditional functional environment in providing basic social services for improved livelihoods.
The two towns have already signed a letter of intent during a fact-finding visit by SPTC to Tsumeb in April. Other municipalities the SPTC once entered into twinning arrangements with are Polokwane, South Africa, Trollhattan, Sweden and Lobatse.
Letlhogela encouraged the council to explore a possible strategic partnership with Tsumeb because of striking similarities between the two towns. She said Selebi–Phikwe should also benchmark on the tourism development in Tsumeb. “An old mine shaft area in central Tsumeb has been identified as a very large and important tourist attraction area, hence Selebi –Phikwe can also establish and promote tourism around mining areas and attract investors.
“The twinning arrangement between the two towns can also benefit Selebi-Phikwe in terms of events that can be used to attract tourists,” she said. Apparently, Tsumeb has an annual festival called Copper festival, and Selebi-Phikwe can benchmark on the management model adopted for such events.
The Copper festival has over the years evolved from a commemoration to an exhibition, trade fair, sporting event and a cultural celebration. Selebi –Phikwe as a copper mine can also learn from Tsumeb and organise such events to diversify the economy. The two towns are also expected to partner in urban agriculture development as both towns lie in a fertile area with good soil and abundant water resources.
Tsumeb town, mainly focuses on horticulture production, and has been able to integrate the rural side of the district into the urban economy in a substantial and sustainable manner.
Letlhogela said with its deliberate urban agriculture imprint, SPTC has an opportunity to share experiences with Tsumeb.
“The two towns can also develop a collective intelligence for the purpose of a truly diversified horticulture sector.
“SPEDU can also benchmark on the strategies that Tsumeb has to support their retailers and use the ideas on the development of the SPEDU Regional Agriculture Strategy. Tsumeb town has also made commendable strides in many aspects of private sector development while Selebi –Phikwe town is still grappling with issues of infusion of the private sector into mainstream regional economy.
In terms of mining, Letlhogela said BCL mine could also learn from Dundee Precious Metal (DPM), who have helped Tsumeb town in terms of Social Corporate Responsibility by establishing an information centre and a trust fund to develop entrepreneurship.
Councillors adopted the report though skeptical of the fact that the results of past twinning arrangements are still yet to be seen.