By The South African Local Government Association, (SALGA) will host its annual Karoo Small Town Regeneration (STR) conference on 29-30 October 2024 in Nxuba, Eastern Cape. The SALGA STR initiative was launched in 2013 and is led by SALGA’s Economic Development and Planning Directorate (EDP) in four provinces namely: the Eastern Cape, Free State, Northern Cape, and Western Cape.
The theme for this year’s conference is “Karoo Region! Investment destination of choice”. The primary aim of the SALGA Karoo STR is to ensure coordination, integration, and harmonization of socio-economic infrastructure investments presenting potential. It is also aimed at ensuring economic growth and job creation initiatives and discussing spatial transformation strategies in accordance with a shared vision and set of development objectives for the Karoo region.
The conference will give an account of the resolutions and progress made on the outcomes of the annual conference held in Springbok, Northern Cape in 2024. Representatives from over 40 Karoo municipalities spanning the four provinces, as well as selected relevant national and provincial departments will attend the event.
Some of the major milestones reached through the Karoo STR initiative in the past three years include the Karoo Regional Spatial Development Framework (RSDF) completion which was gazetted by the then Minister Thoko Didiza in September 2023, the launch of the Karoo RSDF and the establishment of the Karoo IGR management structure in November 2023. The induction of the Karoo IGR Forum which serves as a governance structure that provides formal channels for political and technical intergovernmental collaboration, cooperation, integration, and harmonization in the initiation, strengthening and support of spatial, social, and economic development in the Karoo region has also been amongst the achievements in this regard.
The one-and-a-half-day programme will include discussions on innovation mapping in the Karoo Region with an update on technology innovations in line with the regional, provincial, and national Spatial Development Frameworks to enhance development of small towns in the Karoo.
The conference will be held at the Palms B&B, Nxuba, Inxuba Yethemba Local Municipality from 9am on both days.
