Durban – A high-profile delegation’s visit to Baltimore in the US, had taken the KwaZulu-Natal province and its potential for growth to another level, the provincial premier, Senzo Mchunu, said on Thursday.
Mchunu said this after visiting the port of Baltimore, where he met members of the port authority and two of the biggest privately-owned port operators, and where he and the delegation explored potential areas of collaboration with established and emerging KZN operators.
“It is interesting how the State of Maryland has used its port as a driver for job creation. From what we have heard, there is room for co-operation at a strategic programme design as we grow our blue economy,” he said.
Meetings were also held with the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development, which focused on how to grow further the trade already taking place with South Africa.
Opportunities in biotechnology were highlighted as potential key growth areas that KZN should look into closely.
The delegation also met representatives of the Maryland Tourism, Film and Arts, where it learned how the State of Maryland had positioned the arts to advance economic development, education and quality of life.
The final meeting of the day was with the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development, where the delegation learned about the experiences and models developed to deal with sustainable human settlements.
Mike Mabuyakhulu, the MEC for Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs, said there were ample opportunities for the two regions to work together, adding that he would like to see more emerging entrepreneurs from KZN benefit from the sister city initiative.