The EThekwini Municipality urges all local businesses to register on the City’s #BuyLocal database via the municipal website open from 15 October 2020 until 15 November 2020.
The Covid_19 pandemic has left the City in great financial strain with businesses across all sectors having suffered tremendous loss and a shortfall of revenue since the national lockdown announced in March. The Municipality’s Economic Development and Planning (ECOD) Cluster is therefore embarking on a “Buy Local, Invest Local” campaign to drive the local economy and ensure that local based businesses are placed at the forefront of economic development, growth and investment.
In May, the City announced the Economic Recovery Plan (ERP) developed as a short-term response to the challenges brought about by the Covid_19 outbreak. The ERP consists of eleven pillars, of which pillar eight is a specific response to Building Social Coalitions which seeks to rebuild and revitalize economic activity among the City’s most vulnerable through a Buy Local, Invest Local Campaign. The #BuyLocal campaign demonstrates the City’s intent to support local businesses as part of the ERP.
The campaign calls for all qualifying local businesses fitting within a defined set of criteria to register on the municipal website, www.durban.gov.za.
The final list of businesses on the database will be used to support, promote and market the qualifying entrants for this campaign in line with the various units/departmental mandates within the ECOD Cluster.
The objectives for this campaign are as follows:
1. to inculcate a Buy Local culture at eThekwini
2. to target businesses with latent or under-exposed ‘local’ flavour
3. to target, where possible, local business products / services / events / experiences that have been conceptualised and produced within eThekwini
4. to better coordinate the promotion and marketing of local business products / services / events / experiences
5. to raise awareness amongst consumers and in markets for local business products / services / events / experiences
6. to successfully identify high potential market opportunities for local business products / services / events / experiences
7. to establish mechanisms for dialogue between local businesses, government and other stakeholders
8. to ensure the securing and sustaining of local business deals
9. to ensure that local emerging businesses are included in the buy local promotion and marketing initiatives
Qualifying Criteria
(1) There is no obligation by the Municipality to support applicants received in the call for this campaign.
(2) A Verification Team will be set up to decide to consider applicants for this campaign, only if:
(a) the product/service/event/experience offered in terms of the campaign is a demonstrably or proven unique innovative concept;
(b) the product/service/event/experience will be exceptionally beneficial to, or demonstrates exceptional creativity within the City;
(c) the person / business who submits the application is the sole provider / exclusively Durban business of the product/service/event/experience offered within eThekwini; and
(d) the reasons/motivation for qualification by the applicant for entry into this campaign are found to be sound by the Final Arbiters.
Enquiries should be sent to: Denny Thaver, Email: denny.thaver@durban.gov.za; 031 463 1046.
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