Invest in Joburg
Welcome to the City of Johannesburg, South Africa’s most vibrant and dynamic city
Our City, known to locals as Joburg, is the financial and economic hub of sub-Saharan Africa, and remains an attractive destination for investment, tourism, and business.
Joburg is a strategic investment destination, offering the best access to markets across Africa, an investor-friendly environment, a stable democracy, leading Information Communication Technology (ICT) infrastructure, and well-development transport network which enable the easy movement of goods and services.
The economic environment within the City is positive, as we continue to implement new inter-modal transport systems and increased capital injections to upgrade our existing infrastructure. Joburg’s economy accounts for 15% of South Africa’s economic output and 44% of that of Gauteng. It is larger than that of most neighbouring countries, equivalent to the eighth biggest country in Africa, or 66th in the world.
Why Invest?
There’s Never Been A Better Time To Consider Johannesburg
We are the gateway to the markets of the rest of Africa. The world’s second largest continent contains about 30% of the world’s mineral reserves and has a population of more than 1 billion, making it the second most populous after Asia.
Joburg is the financial capital of SA and hosts the headquarters of more than 70% of South African companies. It is home to the largest stock exchange on the continent. Joburg’s inland port, the largest in Africa and fifth-largest in the world, handles 30% of the country’s exports.
The JSE Ltd has operated as a market place for the trading of financial products for nearly 120 years. In this time, the JSE has evolved from a traditional floor based equities trading market to a modern securities exchange providing fully electronic trading, clearing and settlement in equities, financial and agricultural derivatives and other associated instruments and has extensive surveillance capabilities. The JSE is also a major provider of financial information.
- Living in Joburg costs around half that of major European cities. The Mercer Cost of Living Survey in 2018 ranked the City at 177th out of 211 countries, making it one of the least expensive expat destinations in the world.
- Joburg is ranked 11th globally as the best emerging market centre of commerce (out of 65 centres)
- Joburg is home to the largest stock exchange on the continent, the Johannesburg Stock Exchange
- JSE in global derivatives Top 10
- Over 70% of South African companies are headquartered in Joburg, including 3 SA firms ranked in the Global Top 40, namely MTN (7), Sasol (24) and Bidvest (37) (AT Kearney Survey for BusinessWeek, involving 2500 companies in 18 countries)
The City also hosts the South African headquarters of more than half of the world’s top 20 global brands, with an increasing number of blue-chip companies investing in Joburg, including Bank of India, Barclays, Lafarge, Huawei, Hi-Sense, LG, L’Oréal, Ranbaxy, SBI, Scania, Sinosteel, Sony Ericsson and Tata Group.
Lifestyle
Joburg enjoys near-idyllic weather year-round. Summers are pleasantly warm, with hot summer days often cooled down by afternoon rain.
Joburg is a vibrant, diverse, cosmopolitan city: a melting pot of nationalities, races, religions and cultures. It offers a unique blend of first-world sophistication and emerging market vitality. The City is renowned for its hospitality – possibly because many residents weren’t born here but have been attracted by the lively job market and upbeat lifestyle. Joburgers excel at making people feel welcome.
As foreign investment continues to grow, Joburg is becoming home to large concentrations of foreign residents and it is not unusual to hear French, Portuguese, German, Italian, Greek, Hindi or Mandarin around town.
For more info, go to Joburg Tourism
Living in Joburg costs around half that of major European cities. The Mercer Cost of Living Survey in 2014 ranked the City at 203rd out of 211 countries, making it one of the least expensive expat destinations in the world.
Index compares the price of a Big Mac globally, based on the concept of Purchasing-Power Parity (local price divided by price in the US) :
| South Africa | 1.89 |
| Russia | 2.15 |
| Indonesia | 2.33 |
| Hong Kong | 2.48 |
| China | 2.83 |
Joburg offers a range of housing options from small apartments close to business areas, through cluster homes or townhouse in complexes, to standalone homes on large properties.
In 2013, according to The Global Property Guide, a two-bedroom apartment In Joburg's northern suburbs cost ZAR 10,255.80 (approx. USD 1,282.00 or GBP 538.00) while a 420 sq. m home cost ZAR 23,431.20 (approx. USD1,892.07 GBP 1,229.44) per month to rent. For those interested in buying property, the Global Property Guide states that in South Africa in 2014:
- the average price of small homes (80-140 sq. m) was ZAR852,000 (US$73,710)
- the average price of medium-sized homes (141-220 sq. m) was ZAR1,191,000 (US$103,038)
- the average price of large homes (221-400 sq. m) was ZAR1,814,000 (US$156,937)
Several professional relocation companies operate in Joburg to ease moving to the city.
Many expatriates and the diplomatic community in Johannesburg choose to send their children to one of the city's excellent private schools which offer first-class education. In addition, the city is home to a number of international schools, including the American International School of Johannesburg, The Deutsche Internationale Schule Johannesburg, the British International College South Africa and the Lycée Français Jules Verne.
The city is home to two major universities, the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits), and the University of Johannesburg (UJ), both with proud traditions and global reputations. Wits has an outstanding academic reputation, has earned the respect of the international community and has attracted international students and researchers. Other universities include the University of South Africa's Florida Campus and the local campus of Australia's MONASH University. Providing high-quality vocational education and training through practical and theoretical experience, public Further Education and Training (FET) colleges in Joburg work closely with local industry to help fulfil the need for trained, skilled and qualified employees.
Globally-recognised executive education, short management courses, business degrees and customised corporate programmes are all on offer. Our City features two South African university business schools, the University of Pretoria's Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) and The Graduate School of Business Administration, otherwise known as the Wits Business School (WBS).
GIBS was ranked as one of the top providers of executive education programmes in 2014, at number 42, by the UK Financial Times (FT) and remains the only African and Middle Eastern Shool in the global Top 50. Wits Business School also achieved a top-100 ranking, coming in at 62nd in the world.
Joburg is also home to Henley Management College, one of the top-ranked business schools in the world, which launched its MBA in South Africa in 1992.
Schools
Many expatriates andthe diplomatic community chose to send their children to the excellent private schools, offering first-class education, including international schools such as:
- St Johns College, a private boys school in Houghton
- American International School of Johannesburg
- British International College South Africa
- Deutsche Internationale Schule Johannesburg
- Lycée Français Jules Verne
Universities
- The University of the Witwatersrand
- University of Johannesburg
- Further Education and Training (FET) colleges offer high quality vocational education and training through practical and theoretical experience.
Executive Education
Globally recognised executive education, short management courses, business degrees and customised corporate programmes are all on offer. SA ranked 30 (133 countries) re quality of management schools in the World Bank and IFC’s Global Competitiveness Index 2009 – 2010.
- GIBS (Gordon Institute of Business Science), ranked in top 45 business schools globall
- The University of Johannesburg
- The University of Johannesburg
- The Graduate School of Business Administration (Wits Business School)
- UNISA Graduate School of Business Leadership
- Henley Management College, one of the world’s top ranked business schools, has an office in Joburg, the only HMC centre in the African continent.
- For more info on MBAs available in SA, visit MBA site
While SA's public healthcare system faces challenges, the country's private health care sector offers world-class medical and health care. Those that can afford it, or mid- to upper-income earners, tend to belong to private medical aid or hospital schemes, and use Johannesburg's private doctors and hospitals. Foreigners also flock to Joburg for surgical procedures as our highly trained doctors have an excellent international reputation, and surgery costs are often significantly lower than elsewhere in the world. Joburg's plastic surgeons in particular attract large numbers of foreigners who often combine cosmetic surgery with a recuperative African safari or health spa holiday.
Economic Growth
Economic Rationale
Infrastructure Investment
As the gateway to Africa, we enable access to the markets of the world’s second largest continent, which contains 30% of the globe’s mineral reserves, and 1 billion people.
Ideal base to reach 14 Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries comprising over 250 million people.
SA has free trade agreement with SADC countries.
Joburg’s OR Tambo International Airport is the biggest and busiest freight and passenger hub in Africa.
Over 20 major international airlines fly to OR Tambo International Airport.
Joburg has 3 airports with links to Africa (OR Tambo International, Lanseria International and Grand Central Airport).
Road and rail links to all the main cities and ports in the sub-continent, including Maputo, Durban, Richard’s Bay, Port Elizabeth and Cape Town.
The largest inland port in Africa and the largest container depot in SA, the City Deep Transport Logistics Hub, are found in Joburg.
Global Competitiveness Ratings highlight Johannesburg’s role in Africa and attractiveness for FDI:
The 2010 World Cup provided the impetus for the Government’s investment in infrastructure and SA is building on this to develop a lasting legacy for its people, including a much improved transport network and communications infrastructure
And Joburg is playing a prominent and trend-setting role in this. For example, the City has implemented an innovative ZAR 1.2-billion Bus Rapid Transit system (called Rea Vaya, which means ‘We are Going’ in Sesotho), designed to provide affordable, efficient and safe transport to the City’s commuters. The first phases are up and running and further roll out will connect the Inner City and Sandton CBDs. The implementation serves as a blueprint for similar systems in the country’s other main metropolitans. Another major infrastructure project was the Gautrain Rapid Rail, which links Johannesburg, the OR Tambo International Airport and Pretoria.
Further, the South African National Roads Agency Limited (SANRAL) is rolling out an impressive upgrade of current roads and building of new roads. The ZAR 20-billion Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project (GFIP) will eventually total approximately 560km of roads to improve accessibility and reduce congestion.
All these projects form part of an overall strategy to establish a strong inter-modal transport system for the City and the province, serving to contribute to further development of the region’s economy. Communications and bandwidth infrastructure has been boosted through projects such as the Eastern Africa Submarine Cable System (EASSy) and Seacom, the SEA Cable System, along the East coast of Africa and SAT-3/WASC (West Africa Cable System) along the West coast.
Joburg is building a sophisticated broadband network and 900km of fibre-optic cable has already been rolled out. This is a public/ private project which will go live during 2015 to aid economic development, reduce telecoms costs and establish Joburg as a digital smart city. We are also rolling out free public Wi-Fi hotspots, including mobile ones on buses, and blanketing targeted areas with free Wi-Fi.
Investment in infrastructure is not only building a world-class City and region, but also provides substantial investment opportunities, creates a more conducive business environment and promotes SA’s role in Africa and the global economy.
Developments include:
R1.2-billion Bus Rapid Transit system (Rea Vaya – ‘We are Going’ in Sesotho), for more info, go to Rea Vaya
High-speed rail transport system, the Gautrain, providing rapid transport between Johannesburg and Tshwane (Pretoria); Sandton CBD and the OR Tambo International Airport, for more info, go to Gautrain
R20-billion Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project, involving upgrading of existing roads and building of new roads to improve accessibility and reduce congestion, for more info, go to the National Roads Agency, under Major Projects
Communications and bandwidth infrastructure projects, including:
– the Eastern Africa Submarine Cable System (EASSy), for more info, go to the EASSy site
– SAT-3/WASC (West Africa Cable System), for more info, click here
– Joburg’s public-private broadband network project to ensure Joburg is a digital smart City, for more info.
City’s plans to ensure sufficient power capability beyond 2010, catering for the City’s continued growth and power demands, for more info, go to city power.co.za or Joburg.org.za
The Connected City:
In addition to the above, Joburg’s rail and road network connects it to all the main cities and ports in the sub-continent.
The City’s air network includes Africa’s biggest and busiest freight and passenger hub, the OR Tambo International Airport
,as well as Lanseria International Airport and Grand Central Airport.
The largest inland port in Africa and the largest container depot in SA, the City Deep Transport Logistics Hub, are found in Joburg.
Joburg is also home to the largest fresh produce market in Africa. The Joburg Market is located in City Deep, just 5km from the City’s central business district and 26km away from OR Tambo International Airport. The impressive 63-hectare property can be accessed from all the main freeways, drawing buyers from all over SA as well as from neighbouring countries, such as Botswana, Swaziland, Mozambique and Zimbabwe.
Telecommunications:
Joburg is the telecoms hub of South Africa, which ranks 23rd in telecommunications development in the world. The city hosts the headquarters of numerous local and international operations, and serves as the base for multi-nationals operating in the rest of the continent.
SA is the 4th fastest growing GSM (Global Systems for Mobile Communications) market globally and is growing at a rate of 50% per annum. SA has 83% penetration of mobile phones, with 34 million active handsets and 70% of these being data capable.
SA is also the continent’s dominant Internet centre, with a quarter of Africa’s users. Joburg-based companies are central to the Internet industry, with nine of the 12 major Internet Service Providers listed by the ISP Association based in Joburg.
Trade Agreements
South Africa participates in a number of preferential trade relationships, both regional and bilateral, and is an active member of the World Trade Organisation. The South African government has made tremendous strides in increasing the country’s global competitiveness, including forming strong economic trading blocs, to provide access to key markets.
These include:
Free trade agreement with South African Development Community (SADC) members, comprising 14 countries.
- Free trade agreement with the European Union (EU), the SA-EU Trade Development Co-operation Agreement.
- Preferential trade agreement with Mercosur, the major South American trading bloc.
In addition, South Africa continues to strengthen its relations with Asia, through increases in two-way trade and finalising co-operation agreements in areas such as scientific and technological exchange, technology transfer, investments and overseas development assistance.
Trade & Investment Promotion
The City’s Trade & Investment Unit within the Department of Economic Development is responsible for advancing Joburg as a preferred investment destination, promoting investment opportunities to domestic and foreign investors, facilitating trade by assisting local companies to access global markets, and providing an efficient investor facilitation and aftercare service.
Connecting you and your business
The Trade & Investment Team have established strong partnerships with City departments and entities in order to ensure a seamless investor experience. We have the sector expertise, market intelligence, and strategic partnerships that will ensure your investment receives all the approvals needed. The Team will ensure that you can start your operations and benefit immediately from investing in Joburg, whether you’re a start-up, experienced business using our City as your African headquarters, or utilising the City as a launch pad to the rest of the African continent.
General information
Financial capital of South Africa
Joburg is the capital of South Africa’s most prosperous and richest province, Gauteng, which also the largest contributor the country’s GDP. Due to Johannesburg’s attraction both in terms of opportunity and socio-economic growth, it is not only the most densely populated city in SA with a population of over 5 million, but also has the highest number of economically active people. The City boasts a large percentage of multinational company’s headquarters in the continent, and is home to the largest stock exchange on the continent. Joburg’s inland port, the largest in Africa and fifth-largest in the world, handles 30% of the country’s exports.
Infrastructure
Joburg continues to invest in world-class infrastructure to enable the City’s continued growth. Over R1.2bn has been invested in the Bus Rapid Transport System (Rea Vaya, Sesotho for “We are Going”), designed to provide affordable, efficient and safe transport to the City’s commuters. Another major infrastructure project was Gautrain, which links Johannesburg, OR Tambo International Airport, and Pretoria. All these projects form part of an overall strategy to establish a strong inter-modal transport system for the City and the province, serving to contribute to further development of the region’s economy. Communications and bandwidth infrastructure has been boosted through projects such as the Eastern Africa Submarine Cable System (EASSy), Seacom, the SEA Cable System, and SAT-3/WASC (West Africa Cable System). The City continues to see investment in the roll-out of high-speed fibre optic broadband.
Tourism
Link to Joburg Tourism website
Lifestyle
Joburg is a vibrant, diverse, cosmopolitan city; a melting pot of nationalities, races, religions and cultures. It offers a unique blend of first-world sophistication and emerging market vitality. Living in Joburg costs around half that of major European cities. The 2018 Mercer Cost of Living Survey ranked the City at 177 out of 209 locations, making it one of the least expensive expat destinations in the world.
Like any major modern city, Joburg has theatres, restaurants, art galleries, shopping malls, casinos, museums, clubs and sports stadia. Joburgers tend to be passionate about sport, particularly rugby, soccer and cricket, making the city a great option for sports lovers. Joburg also has several member-based sports and recreation clubs which offer excellent sporting facilities, restaurants and bars. The City boasts several beautiful, first-rate golf courses.
Climate
Johannesburg enjoys near-idyllic weather year-round. Summers are pleasantly warm, and long hot summer days are often cooled down by afternoon rain. The city has an annual average of between eight and ten hours of sunshine a day. Winters can get cold and frosty, with temperatures sometimes dropping to below freezing at night, but winter days are sunny, crisp and bone dry
Education
The City is home to two major universities, the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits), and the University of Johannesburg (UJ), both with leading reputations for world-class teaching and research. Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Colleges provide high-quality vocational education and training through practical and theoretical experience, and work closely with local industry to help fulfil the need for trained, skilled and qualified employees. Globally-recognised executive education, short management courses, business degrees and customised corporate programmes are all on offer. Our City features two South African university business schools, the University of Pretoria’s Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) and The Graduate School of Business Administration, otherwise known as the Wits Business School (WBS). Joburg is also home to Henley Management College, one of the top-ranked business schools in the world, which launched its MBA in South Africa in 1992.
Health
While South Africa’s public healthcare system faces challenges, the country’s private health care sector offers world-class medical and health care. Foreigners also flock to Joburg for surgical procedures as our highly-trained doctors have an excellent international reputation, and surgery costs are often significantly lower than elsewhere in the world. Joburg’s plastic surgeons in particular attract large numbers of foreigners who often combine cosmetic surgery with a recuperative African safari or health spa holiday.
Safety and security
The City has invested in a CCTV infrastructure in the Inner City, including a round-the-clock operational control centre. This provides surveillance, as well as valuable assistance for urban management, traffic management and service delivery breakdowns. The Inner City’s integrated safety and security plan also involves visible policing and law enforcement.
Joburg’s suburbs are well serviced by private security companies. Private business initiatives have also formed close partnerships with the various law enforcement agencies at local level. These have resulted in successful projects such as City Improvement Districts. The City is also focusing its efforts on improving its response and planning with regard to emergency management services and ensuring that there is a robust and constant focus on updating its disaster management plan, through its dedicated Emergency Services Management department.
Economic Growth
As the country’s biggest metropolitan economy, Joburg is the largest single metro contributor to national economic product, generating 15% of SA’s wealth and around 44% of Gauteng’s economic output. Over the past 10 years, the City’s high economic growth rate has undoubtedly been the major driver behind the performance of the national economy. Joburg’s economy is at least one and a half times bigger than that of the second biggest metro, Cape Town. It has consistently outdone the economic performance of the country’s other metros, making the City the country’s economic hub. Source of basic data: IHS Markit Regional Explorer 2018 (1484).
Growth rates
Over a 20 year period (1996 – 2017), Joburg’s average growth rate was 3.6%, marginally higher than both the provincial economy (3.0%) and national (2.7%) economies. Unsurprisingly, the City enjoys the highest proportion of formal sector employment in SA, currently about 7 – 10 % higher than in all the other Metros. Looking at the educational profile of the City, the population is, in general, becoming better educated. For example, from 2003 to 2013 the number of people with a ‘matric and a Bachelor’s’ degree’ increased with an average annual rate of 6.85%.
Business information
Trade
The Trade & Investment Unit provides export development training and workshops to small businesses in order to equip them to be export-ready in order to exploit global opportunities. These trainings are undertaken quarterly in collaboration with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), and the Gauteng Growth & Development Agency (GGDA). The City’s trade performance has been showing significant growth over the past 5 years, reaching a trade surplus of R53 billion in 2017 (IHS Markit, 2019).
The City of Johannesburg has the largest amount of international trade compared to other municipalities in Gauteng (when aggregating imports and exports, in absolute terms) with a total of R850 billion, and remains one of the largest in the country (GGDA). The Mining sector, Metals and Machinery are the largest contributors to the City’s exports (HIS Markit, Rex, 2019).
Trade Agreements
EU: Trade Agreement between the European Union (EU) and South Africa
- The EU signed an Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) on 10 June 2016 with the SADC EPA Group comprising Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa and Swaziland. Angola has an option to join the agreement in future. The EPA guarantees access to the EU market without any duties or quotas for Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, and Swaziland.
- South Africa will benefit from new market access in addition to the Trade, Development and Cooperation Agreement between the EU and South Africa that currently governs the trade relations with the EU. The new access includes better trading terms mainly in agriculture and fisheries, including for wine, sugar, fisheries products, flowers and canned fruits.
The Southern African Development Community (SADC) Trade Agreement
- The Southern African Development Community (SADC) Protocol on Trade (1996), as amended in 2010, is one of the most important legal instruments guiding SADC’s work on Trade.
- It is an agreement between SADC Member States to reduce customs duties and other barriers to trade on imported products amongst SADC Member States.
- As part of its programme of Regional Integration, SADC has made considerable progress in removing barriers to trade, encouraging growth in the region. SADC has also signed a Protocol on Trade in Services to provide for liberalisation of trade in services.
Trade Agreement between Southern African Customs Union (SACU) and European Free Trade Association (EFTA) states
- The EFTA states signed a Free Trade Agreement with the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) in 2006. The EFTA Member States are Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland.
- The Agreement covers trade in goods and lays the foundation for a further engagement of the Parties with regard to intellectual property, investment, trade in services and public procurement.
- A Joint Committee is established for the supervision and administration of the Agreement, and provisions are included providing for consultations and dispute settlement procedures. In January 2018, EFTA and SACU launched a review process of the Agreement aiming for a general update and development of the FTA.
A preferential trade agreement (PTA) with MERCOSUR
- The preferential trade agreement with MERCOSUR is comprised of Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay was concluded and signed in 2009. While the scope of the market opening is more limited, once ratified, the PTA will create a legal and institutional framework for managing South Africa’s trade relations with these important countries of the South and offer further opportunities to improve South Africa’s export growth in the coming years.
The Southern African Customs Union (SACU)
- The Southern African Customs Union (SACU) is a customs union among five countries of Southern Africa: Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, South Africa and Eswatini (formerly Swaziland). SACU’s objectives include to, inter alia, facilitate cross-border movement of goods between member states; promote integration of member states into the global economy through trade and investment.
The African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA)
- The African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) was approved by the U.S. Congress in May 2000. The purpose of this legislation is to assist the economies of sub-Saharan Africa and to improve economic relations between the United States and the region.
Connecting you and your business
- For inward investment into the City, the DED’s Trade & Investment Promotion Directorate serves to connect your expanding business to our dynamic City.
- We’ve got the sector knowledge, the business information and the connections you need. The unit ensures you can get going quickly and easily to benefit as soon as possible from investing in Joburg, whether you’re a business start-up, a logistics hub or utilising our City as a base for your African headquarters, as a springboard into the rest of the continent.
- We’ll help you find the exact right location and real estate, be it cost competitive land and premises in our urban development zone in the Inner City or state-of-the art offices in the sophisticated business centre of Sandton, home to the country’s securities exchange, our investment, legal and consulting sectors and many multinational branch offices.
- Large scale, job-creating investment projects are now earmarked for fast-track decision-making and processing.
- The Investment Prioritisation Committee was set up to facilitate issues raised by investors and works with other city departments to resolve matters pertaining to large investments in the City.
- Its objective is to reduce turnaround times, thereby reducing the cost of business, attracting investment, and creating jobs.
Opportunity Centres
Sectors Support
South Africa retains its position as the top foreign direct investment (FDI) destination on the African continent, according to the 2018 Ernst & Young (EY) Africa Attractiveness Survey. The report also notes that during 2017 FDI into the African economy increased by 6%, and that in 2016 a total of 676 FDI projects came to African economies, increasing to 718 in 2017.
In this regard, the top five nations on the African continent of FDI projects are South Africa with 96 projects, giving it a 31% share of FDI in 2017(EY).
Sector support is one of the crucial components of the City’s economic development strategies, with key sectors identified as drivers that could influence and fast track economic growth:
- Financing and Business Services
- Construction and Property;
- Information and Communication Technology;
- Business Process Outsourcing;
- Freight and Logistics;
- Manufacturing;
- Tourism (including events and cross-border trade);
- Creative Industries; and
- Retail
To encourage investment, both locally and foreign, the Sector Development Programme, which is key to the City’s Long-Term Economic Development Strategy, looks to strengthen the competitiveness of the sectors and includes sector clustering and support initiatives.
Financial and Business Services
This sector continues to contribute the highest percentage to Joburg’s economy, with the financial services sector of world class standard and backed by a sound regulatory and legal framework. The sector boasts dozens of domestic and foreign institutions providing a full range of services – commercial, retail and merchant banking, mortgage lending, insurance and investment. Foreign interest in the sector is strong, with financial services and business services together enjoying the majority of FDI in Joburg.
Joburg is the SA headquarters for all the foreign and domestic banks operating in SA, including the world’s top four banks, HSBC, Citibank, RBS and JP Morgan Chase Bank. Joburg’s position as the economic hub of SA and Africa, and strong infrastructure commitment, opens up numerous opportunities for a diverse range of business and consultancy services, from legal, through accounting and insurance, to architecture and engineering. The world’s largest consultancy firms, Deloitte & Touche, Ernst & Young, and PricewaterhouseCoopers, all have their national headquarters in Joburg, while local large accounting practices such as BDO Spencer Steward and Grant Thornton are also based in the City.
Construction and Property
- The Urban Development Zone (UDZ) tax incentive is boosting Joburg’s construction industry, as is the Inner-City Property Scheme (ICPS).
- The UDZ scheme aims at encouraging inner city renewal across SA. It takes the form of a tax allowance covering an accelerated depreciation of investment made in either refurbishment of existing property, or the creation of new developments within the inner city, over a period of five, or 17 years, respectively.
- The ICPS addresses urban decay and accelerates the rejuvenation of the CBD. Dilapidated, abandoned and illegally occupied buildings, as well as vacant pieces of land, are being regenerated and rejuvenated.
SA does not have non-recourse debt, the bulk of properties are full title, while the rights of property owners are protected in the Constitution, giving investors security. Foreigners can own immovable property in South Africa without restriction. However, all foreign funds remitted to the country must be declared and documented. The property must also be endorsed ´non-resident´, as a condition for repatriation of funds. (www.globalpropertyguide.com). The country also has a very sophisticated listed property sector, with high liquidity, providing an alternative investment option for those who do not want direct ownership of land or property.
Information and Communication Technology (ICT)
- Focus areas for Joburg include ICT skills development, ICT research and development, provision of ICT infrastructure and ICT incubation and venture capital.
- The City is focusing on catalytic and sustainable projects and is partnering with business and academia to take these forward. According to the ITU’s ICT Index, South Africa ranked 92th in 2018 in terms of ICT development, the best among African countries. The City is already the hub of the local ICT and telecommunications industry, with a significant number of the global players running branches out of Joburg, including Google, SAP, HP, IBM, Nokia, Siemens, LG, and Oracle or investing through partners based in Joburg, such as Neotel (Tata Communications), Dimension Data (Cisco), Vodacom (Vodafone) and Core Group (Apple), or using the City as a base for operating in the rest of the continent.
Business Process Outsourcing
- The South African market for Global Business Services – GBS (Including BPO, BPS, BPM, Shared Service and Contact Centres) consists of a mature and sizeable domestic market that employs approximately 190,000 people and a vibrant and growing international market (delivering export services from South Africa) employing approximately 40,000 people, that has witnessed high growth over the past four years, growing by 22% annually since 2011 (28% in 2018), which is twice the global growth rate of the sector, and three times faster than competitors, India and the Philippines.
- The BPS operators in the GBS sector deliver a range of services for their local and global clients including contact centre services, finance and accounting services, legal services, IT services, Education services, HR services and knowledge services while captive operators provide shared services to their corporate divisions and business units.
- The domestic market is dominated by financial services (66, 5%) followed by Telecommunications at (8,7%) and IT at (5,4%) while the international market profile looks quite different, being shaped by demand from our source markets, with Technology and Communications representing (59%) of all offshore work, Retail (11%), Financial services (7%) and a variety of other services representing (24%).
A recent World Bank Report cited the BPO sector as both desirable and attractive in terms of FDI ranking the sector as a priority, growth sector for the country in terms of achieving the auspicious goal of $100bn investment over a five-year period. To achieve the investment goal, government recently launched the Public Private Growth Initiative (PPGI) which serves as a linkage between government and fourteen priority sectors. GBS has been identified as in one of the priority sectors and is represented by a partnership with the official Trade Body and Sector Association, BPESA, at the table. To add to the countries accolades, the 2018 Global Front Office BPO Omnibus survey published by Ryan Strategic Advisory, ranked South Africa second globally for the provision of front office BPO contact centre services.
Freight and Logistics
- With road, air and rail being well developed around Joburg, and receiving further significant investment, it is no wonder that Joburg is becoming increasingly recognised as a freight and logistics hub.
- The largest inland port in Africa and the largest container depot in SA, the City Deep Transport Logistics Hub, are found in Joburg.
- City Deep is one of the prominent Logistical Hub located in the City of Johannesburg. It is home to Africa’s largest dry port. It is also South Africa’s largest dry port which is hugely significant to the industrial well-being of the country as a whole.
- R122-million is currently being invested in massive infrastructure upgrades, new developments and accelerated expansion of the roads leading to the terminal. This is over and above the R900-million that state-owned logistics and rail entity Transnet will spend over the next few years on the freight terminal, allowing it to handle increased volumes.
With the nearest seaport – Durban – about 500km away, the importance of the City Deep Hub to the regional economy is far-reaching. It is a key forwarding and clearing hub of goods to the rest of Africa and is connected by major rail and road infrastructure links. Joburg is connected by rail to all the main cities and ports in the sub-continent, including Maputo, Durban, Richards Bay, Port Elizabeth and Cape Town. Boosting our rail network, SA has just commissioned 600 modern trains to replace ageing rolling stock on the nation’s commuter rail networks. OR Tambo International Airport (previously Johannesburg International Airport), the biggest and busiest airport on the continent, is the passenger and freight hub for southern Africa. The OR Tambo International Airport Industrial Development Zone project serves to further promote opportunities within the freight and logistics sector.
Manufacturing
With manufacturing generating close to 14% of Joburg’s GVA, the City has embarked on an aggressive plan to re-align the sector away from traditional heavy industry input markets to focus more on sophisticated, high value-added production and activities. This is in line with the provincial government’s undertaking to make a special effort to focus on value-added exports sectors, with the primary aim of diversifying Gauteng’s industrial base.
Tourism
- Business travellers spend three times more than leisure travellers when visiting a country. According to the World Travel & Tourism Council, business travel spending in South Africa in 2014 was estimated at R81.3bn.
- Business travellers attending business events in Joburg mostly stay in paid-for accommodation, and undertake pre or post conference tours or day trips to explore the city and its surrounds. Business events visitors (including delegates for meetings, exhibitions, incentives and conventions), contribute to job creation, skills development, innovation, building the knowledge economy and to the City’s gross domestic product.
- The City of Gold attracted 4.05 million international overnight visitors in 2017 according to the annual Mastercard Global Destination Cities’ Index (GDCI).
Johannesburg also recorded the highest international overnight visitor expenditure among African cities with travellers spending US$2.14 billion in 2017, well ahead of Marrakech (US$1.64 billion). On average, international visitors stayed 10.9 nights and spent US$48 per day in Johannesburg, with shopping accounting for more than 50 percent of their total spend. Of the total number of foreign business visitors who arrive in Gauteng province, Joburg’s market share is the greatest of all the province’s regions attracting 82.4% of all business professionals and 73.8% of all business events delegates.
By far the biggest percentage of all visitors to Gauteng come to Johannesburg. Of these, 67% visit the city for entertainment, 72.7% for medical purposes, 75% for sports participation and 83% as sports spectators. In 2014, 58.1% of African travellers visited Gauteng province to visit friends and relatives. 18.4% came to shop, 4.8% were business professionals, and 3.2% attended conferences. Of the 18.4% that came to shop, 97.1% came to shop in Johannesburg, with 68.3% visiting Johannesburg to be with friends and family.
Joburg has also been recognised with various accolades including:
- Johannesburg’s Maboneng Precinct was recently named as one of the World’s Coolest Suburbs by Forbes Magazine [2018]
- Based on millions of reviews and opinions from travellers around the world Johannesburg has made TripAdvisor’s top ten list in the Travellers’ Choice Awards for Best Destinations in Africa [2018]
- The Bannister Hotel in downtown Jozi’s Braamfontien was voted as the 2018 Best Value Hotel by Afristay
- Johannesburg’s Sandton Convention Centre has recently been named as the Best Large Conference Venue in the 2018 Business Traveller Awards Africa, as well as “Best Conference Venue Centre in Gauteng” in the Star Readers’ Choice Awards 2018. [Source: www.sandtontourism.com]
Creative Industries
- The Gauteng audio-visual industry contributes in excess of ZAR 2.5-billion to the province. More than 70% of the SA filming and television industry is based in Gauteng, mainly in Joburg.
- The City is already the country’s primary broadcasting hub for international television and radio. CNBC Africa, owned by NBC Universal, has its broadcast operation in Joburg. CNBC is the first digital, server-based television operation to be established in Africa, and broadcasts to 41 countries via Multichoice Africa.
With its world-class industry infrastructure, recognised expertise and wide range of locations, South Africa’s powerhouse province of Gauteng – and Joburg in particular – is a filming destination of choice. Movies filmed wholly or partly in Joburg over the last few years include award-winning local production District 9, superhero blockbuster Avengers: Age of Ultron – which chose the city as the setting for one of the biggest action sequences in the film, the Denzel Washington-Ryan Reynolds thriller Safe House and Vehicle 19.
Retail
Retail plays a huge part in Johannesburg’s economy, encompassing everything from micro ‘spaza’ shops to sophisticated world-class shopping malls. Our City has a number of large retail precincts; the inner city business district and the Sandton City precinct are two of the biggest.
Regions
The percentages refer to the percentage that sector or industry contributes to the Region’s Gross Value Add (GVA).
Region A: (Diepsloot/Kya Sands/Midrand)
Region A, contributes 13 % of Joburg’s GVA. In Region A, Kya Sands node was selected as an industrial node. There is also a large concentration of manufacturing firms as a proportion of total business activity. Kya Sands has opportunities in the manufacturing of furniture, electrical machinery and equipment, food, beverages and tobacco products and machinery and equipment. It is further characterised by hi-tech and light industrial businesses. Midrand is one of the fastest growing areas in South Africa.
Key industries and sectors:
- Finance and business services (30.7%)
- Community, social and personal services (19.8%)
- Manufacturing industries (electronics industries, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, automotive and others) (15%)
- Trade (15%)
- Construction – leveraging off the property development trends. (4.4%)
Region B: (Randburg)
Region B contributes approximately 12% of Johannesburg’s Gross Value Add (GVA), with the finance and business services sector by far the largest contributor to its economy. For Region B, Strijdom Park has been selected as an industrial node, and has opportunities in the manufacturing of Electrical Machinery & equipment.
Key industries and sectors:
- Finance and business services (32%)
- Community and Personal Services (23 %)
- Trade (14 %)Manufacturing (13 %)
- Construction (3.7 %)
- Transport and communication (8 %).
Region C: (Roodepoort)
Region C’s of contribution to Jobur’s GVA is 12%For Region C, Robertvilleis the largest node by surface area and also has the highest proportion of manufacturing firms as a percentage of total business activity .Robertville has manufacturing activity across 16 different sectors ( machinery & equipment, wood & wood products etc).
Key industries and sectors:
- Financial and business services (28.8 %)
- Community and Personal Services (24.2%)
- Trade (15.9%).
- Manufacturing (14.4 %)
- Transport (6.9%)
- Construction (4.6%)
- This is followed by smaller contributions by construction, transport and the trade sector.
Region D: (Greater Soweto)
Region D contributes 10% of the region’s GVA. Soweto is South Africa’s most famous township, and attracts visitors from all over the world, making tourism one of its major economic drivers. The informal sector has proliferated in Soweto to become a very important source of employment opportunities and income. Retail is taking off with, for example, Maponya Mall, Soweto’s first mega upmarket shopping centre. In Region D, Nancefield node was selected. Nancefield has manufacturing activity across 12 different sectors. There are 107 firms within the node. Almost 50% (56) of the firms in the node are manufacturing firms and 9 firms provide transport and logistics services. The main manufacturing subsectors are furniture (25 firms); food, beverages and tobacco products (9 firms) and wood and wood products (9 firms, also mostly furniture manufacturers).
Other key industries and sectors:
- Community and Personal Services (33.2%)
- Financial and Business Services (23.3%)
- Manufacturing (11.3%)
- Trade (13.8 %)
- Transport and Communication (9.6%)
- Construction (3.8%)
Region E: (Sandton/Alexandra/Orange Grove)
Region E’s contribution to Joburg is 21%, and it incorporates the Sandton CBD, a preferred location for many large banking and financial services institutions. Business activity is focused around this financial district. The finance and business services sector is by far the largest contributor to the region’s economy. In Region E, the Marlboro/Wynberg node were selected. There are 498 firms in the node of which only 66 are manufacturing firms. The main manufacturing sectors with opportunities are textiles, clothing and leather goods (13 firms), furniture and jewellery (9 firms), and chemicals (8 firms)
Key industries and sectors:
- Finance and business (33.2%).
- Trade (14.6%)
- Manufacturing (13.6%)
- Community and Personal Services (21.7%)
- Transport and communication (8.1%)
- Construction (4.0%).
Region F: (Inner City)
Region F contributes 27% of the region’s GVA the Inner City area of Joburg is home to the headquarters of several of South Africa’s major banks and mining houses, as well as the Gauteng provincial government. The City Deep Hub falls within this region. The city’s economic rejuvenation strategy focuses on urban renewal projects, the development of Small, Medium and Micro Enterprises (SMMEs) and the encouragement of creative industries and cultural tourism. In Region F, City Deep node was selected.
There are 174 establishments in City Deep of which there are 21 manufacturing and 29 transport and storage establishments City Deep is the largest inland port in Africa and a gateway into the southern African region; offering specialised logistics facilities such as warehousing, storage, customs clearance and container repair. Opportunities: The node has 4 railway stations close to or within the industrial node: Kaserne West, City Deep, Benrose North and Benrose South. The railway network connects City Deep through major cities to the major container ports of Durban, Cape Town and Ngqura
Key industries and sectors:
- Finance and business services (28.7%)
- Trade (14.6%)
- Manufacturing (14%)
- Transport and Communication (7.4%)
- .Community and Personal Services (24.3%)
- Construction (3.4%)
Region G: (Ennerdale/Orange Farm/Lenasia)
Region G contributes 5% of the region’s GVA There is limited economic activity in this region, although there is high agricultural potential. Potential also exists in the manufacturing; wholesale, retail and trade; transport and communication sectors, as well as tourism. For Region G, Devland node was selected. In Devland there is a concentration of food processing firms, with 26% of firms in the food, beverages and tobacco sector. There are 74 firms in the node, 31 of which are manufacturing firms. Most of the remaining firms (28 firms) are wholesale and retail entities. There are 8 manufacturing-related services firms in Devland. Four provide transport and storage services, two provide maintenance and repair services, and two provide other business services. The largest manufacturing subsectors are food processing (8 firms), wood and wood products (5 firms) and iron and steel
Key industries and sectors:
- Financial and Business Services (26.6%)
- Community and Personal Services (24.6%)
- Manufacturing (13.4%)
- Trade (13%)
- Agriculture (0.6)
Investment Brochure
Begin in Johannesburg- Your strategic business location.
Real Estate
Although SA’s property market has been through a boom, investors can still enter the real estate market at realistic market prices. Importantly, SA does not have non-recourse debt, the bulk of properties are full title, while the rights of property owners are protected in the Constitution, giving investors security.
The country also has a very sophisticated listed property sector, with high liquidity, providing an alternative investment option for those who do not want direct ownership of land or property.
This provides investors with an opportunity to come in at a very realistic market price, unlike during the overheated property market over the previous five years.
Further, SA has a very sophisticated listed property sector, with high liquidity, providing an alternative investment option for those who do not want direct ownership of land or property.
Find the results of the SAPOA/IDP South Africa Annual Property Index in the Key Documents of this page.
For more info, visit the SAPOA website, the representative body of the commercial and industrial property industry in SA.
Property Market:
Leaders in the SA property market, such as JHI, with approximately ZAR 31-billion of assets under management, see interest picking up again. Whereas one of the biggest constraints for all investments, including property, is that liquidity globally is under pressure, in SA, if you have the balance sheet to back it up, our banks are still open for business and are supportive of FDI.
Looking forward, SA is experiencing green shoots everywhere in property economics, for example GDP is turning, business confidence is making an upward turn and more positive manufacturing production volumes are coming through. This, combined with the fact that we are coming off a very low vacancy rate in the region (overseas average is 7, SA is 3), is encouraging for investment. Plus, SA does not have non-recourse debt, the bulk of properties are full title, while the rights of property owners are protected in the constitution, giving investors security.
Skills Development
For more information, go to www.cipro.co.za