The Mpumalanga Department of Economic Development, Environment and Tourism (DEDET) had linked 368 small, medium-sized and microenterprises (SMMEs) to business opportunities created by the Kusile power station project, outside Delmas, since its inception, DEDET MEC Pinky Phosa said on Thursday.

In the 2011/12 financial year, about 232 SMMEs were awarded contracts at Kusile, with an additional 136 SMMEs having been guided to obtain contracts at Kusile in the 2012/13 financial year. The business opportunities covered sectors such as construction, catering and material supply.

‘’We are excited about the contribution which the Kusile project is making as far as SMMEs and cooperatives are concerned. The project has enabled many residents from neighbouring towns in the eMalahleni municipality, such as Delmas, Ogies and Phola, to obtain jobs and that enabled them to take care of their families and, over and above these, the province has benefitted economically,” Phosa said.

Meanwhile, the Kusile project had also led to a boom in the local economy of the Nkangala region and, subsequently, the province, with Eskom and its constructors having injected about R238-billion into the local economy.

The DEDET further pointed out that the project had created about 8 000 permanent jobs, of which 4 000 were held by locals.

Phosa also indicated the importance of government intervention in the economy to ensure that the historically disadvantaged communities played a crucial role in the mainstream of the economy.

“Our intervention in the economy is crucial, we want to make sure that our people also become empowered and access business opportunities in projects such as the Kusile project. I will continue to push for more and greater participation of the historically disadvantaged people in the provincial economic system through engagements with big business,” she added.

Meanwhile, in an effort to ensure that people of the province were able to tap into business opportunities in Mpumalanga, Phosa indicated that the DEDET would develop a provincial broad-based black economic-empowerment (BBBEE) database.

“We will develop the provincial BBBEE database and maintain it to ensure that BBBEE bears fruits [for] the people of Mpumalanga. The database will then be linked to the national BBBEE information technology portal, which would expose those complaint companies to other business opportunities in the economy,” she said.