RAY SMUTS WHILE THE Western Cape is home to major corporations from many sectors, last year’s move by Old Mutual of around 200 senior personnel to Johannesburg triggered alarm bells in some quarters. It is also rumoured that several large companies intend relocating their entire head office structures to Gauteng. “This will be sad for Cape Town and the city; private sector and commerce will have to make a concerted effort to attract more head offices,” says Albert Schuitmaker, executive director of the Cape Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Much of the Chamber’s attention is currently focused on the 2010 World Soccer Cup and here Schuitmaker is concerned at the slow pace of progress. “We have been assured by the contractors that the new R1.5 billion, 68 000-seater Green Point stadium will be completed in time, but if plans relating to transport and other projects are still in the planning stage, our concern is we are going to get caught halfway.
