Gauteng export finalists rake in exceptional global response

EXPORTERS HAVE until September 26 to submit their entries for the 2008 Gauteng Exporter of the Year Awards. This premier event on the export calendar is organised by the Johannesburg Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI) with the support of Absa, the dti, Transnet, Credit Guarantee and Safcor Panalpina. Keith Brebnor, CEO of the JCCI, believes export growth is a priority, particularly in Gauteng which delivers such a significant percentage of the national GDP. “The Chamber wholeheartedly supports national government’s emphasis on promoting international trade as a means of growing the economy.” The awards were launched in 2001 to highlight the achievements of the province’s leading exporters. The JCCI produces a booklet of all the finalists each year which is distributed worldwide through South African embassies, trade delegations and the like. “This is a very important source of new business for the finalists as they are seen as being ‘accredited’ exporters and they get a great response,” said Joan Warburton-McBride, head of membership at the JCCI.