Jo'burg CBD will host SA's world trade centre

Scheduled to open in March next year Anna Cox SOUTH AFRICA is to get its own world trade centre. Although the new centre, which is scheduled to open in March next year, will be situated in the heart of Johannesburg's central business district at Penmor Tower in Rissik Street, it is expected to cater for the business needs of the whole country. The building will be upgraded and converted, at a cost of R25 million, into a showcase for South African and foreign business. It will offer 15 000msq of space to 773 South African and 537 foreign companies. The 17-storey building is expecting to host about 120 000 business visitors annually from 229 countries around the world. The trade centre is destined to be the first stop for business visitors who will be able to access business information and research and data in their particular fields. It is an initiative of the International Trade Bureau, a private sector international trade promotion company which is working closely with the Department of Trade and Industry and the Johannesburg and Gauteng development agencies, which have welcomed its establishment. The centre has support from various export councils, industry associations, foreign trade representatives and trade promotion fairs. It will provide a comprehensive range of trade facilitation services to foreign and business visitors and local exporters. To achieve its goals of maximising local companies' exposure to foreign markets, the trade centre will specifically target foreign business visitors to South Africa. "It is believed that more than 600 000 come here each year for business but they get lost in the system and no one knows what they do and where they go. By using the trade centre, we will be able to get more comprehensive statistics on business visitors and the fields they operate in," said Mile Stojacovic, managing director of the International Trade Bureau. Already 25% of the occupancy quota has been taken. It is expected to have 95% occupancy by December next year.