IN the wake of a tough Covid-19 period, the board of the Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre (Durban ICC) is turning its focus to a recovery strategy.
To this end, the board presented a growth strategy to the City’s Executive Committee on November 22. The presentation, which covered operational challenges, business recovery and turnaround strategy, was preceded by a site inspection of the facility.
In a statement, the City said the Durban ICC performed well before the Covid pandemic when it contributed R6.3b to the GDP and created 14 000 jobs in the 2019 fiscal. While the period from April 2020 to March 2022 was challenging for the entity, there were no retrenchments.
Speaking at the event, MayorMxolisi Kaunda thanked the board for their work to ensure the entity remains a key revenue-generating asset for the city.
“We are grateful for the work of the board and pledge that the City will continue supporting the board in positioning the Durban ICC as the world-class facility that it is,” said Kaunda.
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Commenting on employee strike action and overtime demands, Kaunda said City manager Musa Mbhele would implement consequence management.
“It must be clear that overtime is not a right but a privilege, and therefore, the City is not going to be held to ransom by employees who undermine the rule of law,” he added.
Recovery in the City
Kaunda also commended the City’s cleaning campaign which has received overwhelming support from all sectors of society.
“We want to encourage businesses, informal traders, and residents to work with us to keep the City clean. We have embarked on an intensive education and communication campaign to create awareness about the importance of disposing of litter in designated areas,” added Kaunda.
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Referring to the arrest of a municipal employee last week, Mayor Kaunda reiterated that the City remains committed to rooting out fraud and corruption.
“We want to assure the public that the Municipality will cooperate with law enforcement authorities to ensure that we get to the bottom of this matter. The Municipality has also commenced its own internal investigation to ensure that we leave no stone unturned in the fight against the scourge of corruption,” he concluded.
He reiterated the City’s commitment to relocate flood victims from mass care centres to family-friendly accommodations before Christmas.
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