Page 90 - Estimates of Public Entities Revenue & Expenditure 2023

PROVINCE OF THE EASTERN CAPE ESTIMATES OF PUBLIC ENTITIES REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE 2023/24

7. 2022/23 PERFORMANCE REVIEW

Key achievements

The CDC has remained resilient throughout the 2022/23 financial year to date. Much of the focus
during the year has been to return operations to pre-COVID-19 Pandemic levels. This was both in

relation to work done on behalf of clients as implementing agent and driving investment growth.
Results as at 31 December 2022 show that the CDC has achieved on the majority of its objectives.

Investment attraction remains one of the strategic priorities of the CDC as mandated by the SEZ Act

hence the CDC will continue to increase strategic economic advantage for targeted industries. As at
31 December 2022, the CDC has already secured 5 investors into the SEZ with a combined
investment value of R292 million.

The CDC’s contribution to socio-economic development and transformation will be achieved by
increasing opportunities for the marginalised through the Small, Medium and Micro Enterprises
(SMMEs) development, employment creation and skills development. The strategy seeks to increase

opportunities for the youth, people with disabilities and women. Notwithstanding the absence of full
operational funding and reduction in infrastructure spend, the CDC continues to contribute to the
growth of small businesses by targeting 33 per cent of spend on SMMEs.

Key challenges
The global environment for doing business is more challenging this financial year than last year,

however, the Coega SEZ’s unique value proposition will continue to pay dividends beyond all
expectations. Although, the scarring impact of the pandemic as well as the current geopolitical tensions
on employment and investment decisions, the success of the Coega SEZ is even more important,

given the current climate of low economic growth and investment volatility.

The CDC had limitations in fully implementing its activities, which may affect the achievement of its
targets for the financial year. This is largely due to the cash flow constraints brought about by declining
revenues, further exacerbated by challenges in the collection of debtors, especially government

clients. For the 2022/23 financial year the organisation substantially used self-generated revenue to
fund operational expenditure and Government partly funded the CDC’s shortfall, where required.

8. 2023/24 Performance Outlook

Ongoing concerns around the electricity supply constraints, a poor jobs outlook, and material fiscal
constraints do not set South Africa’s expected economic growth recovery on a good path for 2024.

South Africa’s growth and fiscal outcomes surprised the upside in 2022, but risks are tilted to the
downside for the 2023. According to National Treasury, the country’s economy would grow by 1.9 per
cent in 2022 (downwardly revised from 2.1% in 2022 budget review), and decrease further to 1.4 per

cent in 2023.

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