High-Level CEO Dialogue to Shape South Africa’s Spatial Industrial Development Strategy

Sandton, 25 June 2025 – The Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (the dtic) will tomorrow host a high-level policy dialogue with business leaders and key stakeholders to refine South Africa’s draft Spatial Industrial Development Strategy (SIDS). The session, taking the form of an extended CEOs Forum, will be held at the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) in Sandton at 10:00 on Thursday, 26 June 2025.

The event aims to provide a strategic platform for robust engagement between government, industry leaders, and development partners as South Africa seeks to craft a spatially targeted, inclusive approach to industrial development.

The Deputy Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition, Mr Zuko Godlimpi, will deliver the keynote address and lead the discussions. He emphasized that the forum is not merely consultative, but an essential component in co-creating a responsive and inclusive policy framework.

“This CEOs Forum is not just a meeting of minds; it is a strategic platform to ensure our Spatial Industrial Development Strategy is responsive, inclusive and grounded in the lived realities of business and communities across the country,” said Godlimpi. “We want a framework that reflects the voice of industry and responds to regional economic disparities through practical and impactful interventions.”

The draft SIDS is positioned as a critical instrument in the dtic’s broader mandate to promote balanced industrial development, support regional economies, and strengthen the effectiveness of Special Economic Zones (SEZs) throughout the country.

Key elements of the strategy include geographically targeted industrial growth, enhanced infrastructure coordination, and improved governance of SEZs and industrial parks. It also seeks to harmonize the roles of national, provincial, and local government in regional economic development.

“Special Economic Zones remain one of the dtic’s flagship programmes to catalyse investment, create decent jobs and strengthen export competitiveness,” Godlimpi added. “As we refine this strategy, we must ensure that SEZs are positioned not just as isolated economic pockets, but as integrated drivers of regional and national transformation.”

The dtic anticipates that the dialogue will generate valuable insights and concrete recommendations to bolster the finalisation and implementation of the strategy. Once adopted, the Spatial Industrial Development Strategy will serve as a national roadmap for achieving spatially just, sustainable, and inclusive industrialisation across South Africa.