City of Onkaparinga

Thank you for the opportunity to present today at the Local Government Association Showcase.
10 minutes to discuss our Journey
I’ll cover:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Our role and focus in the Chinese/Asian market
How we have built a relationship with China
The development of our Sister City Agreement
How we are working with local businesses
What we’ve achieved already, and What the future holds for our region.
1
WHY IS COUNCIL WORKING SO HARD ON ECONOMIC GROWTH WITH A FOCUS ON INVESTMENT ATTRACTION AND BUSINESS ACTIVATION ? We’re focussed on investment attraction and activation because it’s local government’s responsibility to plan for the future, by developing strategies, building relationships and identifying opportunities that secure long‐term prosperity for our city. This work aligns directly with our ongoing strategic objectives for regional development and our Community Plan 2035.
Through our community plan we are focusing on three goals:
• A new economy (to be recognised and seek business nationally and internationally ‐ capitalise on new technology and broadband, whilst also leveraging tourism, food and wine and marketing opportunities)
• The south as a destination (tourism visitor numbers and associated business growth)
• Dynamic and resilient businesses (innovation, collaboration and smart clusters)
2
Our developing Economic Growth and Investment strategy and action plan focuses on three key pillars: Grow Business; Grow Investment; Grow Population and Tourism.
We need to close the gap between actual and potential growth:
We need to be across opportunities and movement in and out of our city as there are disruptions to our economy beyond our control through major business closures and cyclical downturns. China and other international parties can be part of the solution… 2
SO WHAT DO WE SEE OUR ROLE AS?
Primary role as a council is to plan for our city’s future and we are aiming to create the best possible future for our communities.
Economic growth is the leading driver of a prosperous and sustainable future for Onkaparinga and our regions future and we see China and foreign investment as key partner in assisting us to deliver this.
We have seen the conclusion of the China – Australia Free Trade Agreement negotiations at the end of 2014.
READ SLIDE BOXES
3
Our focus in the China and Asian market is very targeted and our participation in the upcoming 2015 state led Shandong Mission comes at an opportune time.
The Mayor, the Director of Finance and Commercial and myself have held a number of business discussions with key investor groups introduced to us via a range of business contacts from both the public and private sector as well as local businesses over the past two years.
We have hosted key Chinese delegations including:
• The formal government delegation from Changli in November 2013 where we facilitated and managed the opportunity for over 20 local businesses from various industries to showcase their products. Subsequent to this visit we were formally invited to visit Changli in Hebei Province in May 2014 and attend their international wine festival, Winefest in August 2014. These visits ultimately culminated in the signing of a formal Sister City Agreement with the City of Onkaparinga.
• The Luzhou delegation in December 2013, which resulted in a council signed MOU and a very lucrative acquisition of 4
•
•
Shottesbrooke Winery.
An investor group from Shenzen interested in purchasing land in McLaren Vale to develop a mixed‐use accommodation facility.
And more recently, a delegation from the Ji’nan Bureau of Commerce (Shandong Province) referred by the Dept of State Development. This group included representatives from the agribusiness, property, manufacturing and construction sectors. While this group is primarily interested in industry parks for agriculture, including Chinese herbs, barley and dairy, we were also able to highlight the many and varied opportunities in our region.
The 2015 Shandong Mission led by DSD starts at the end of May and is timely in that it affords us the opportunity to follow up on the interest expressed by the recent delegation from Ji’nan, pledge our support for the Shandong – South Australia Cooperation and Development Forum and further strengthen our ties in the region. Immediately after the Shandong Mission, Mayor Rosenberg and I will travel to Beijing to further discussions with BDA, the Beijing Development Area Company, with whom we have formed a strategic relationship with over the past two years. This group has expressed great interest in our Noarlunga Regional Centre project and are a provider of top end industrial parks for multinationals and domestic companies in China.
Following this, we will also visit our Sister City in Changli, to congratulate the newly appointed Mayor Zhao. We will also re‐acquaint ourselves with various government officials and meet any newly appointed officials, as a result of the new Mayoral appointment. As we know, the Chinese value their relationships and these are built upon over time. 4
HOW ARE WE TRYING TO MAXIMISE COUNCIL’S IMPACT ON ECONOMIC GROWTH WITH A FOCUS ON OUR BRANDING
COLLATERAL IS KEY!! WE MUST LEAVE SOMETHING TO BE REMEMBERED BY NEED TO MAKE IT EASY BECAUSE IT IS COMPETITIVE
ON BRAND COLLATERAL OUR KEY SECTORS
‐ TALK Through each brochure.
5
Finish off with a few photos and images of our engagement so far and our aspirational goals. The Mayor of Changli has formed a department within their level of government to fast‐track and deliver results on three areas: (since been promoted to County Role)
•
Regional promotion and recognition
•
Industry collaboration and innovation
•
Cultural awareness and appreciation
Through our government to government approach with Changli, our entire region stands to benefit from the outcomes – job growth, greater amenity, education and cultural exchange opportunities, greater export and import relationships, investment, increased visitation and international profile of our region.
We are currently formalising the action plan to deliver on these goals 6
and are working together to commence projects that result from this.
Huge potential for export and growth opportunities for local small and medium businesses, of which we can facilitate introductions which then enables the businesses to work through opportunities and do business.
During our last trip to china we forged new links in Beijing and Shenzhen.
Shenzhen investors are interested in $15 million tourism developments in McLaren Vale with potential for larger investments in the longer term.
Beijing investors interested in $300m+ CBD project for Onkaparinga.
Beijing investors also interested in $30 million Southern Sports Complex and industrial developments. We continue to work with the Australia China Business Council, Department of State Development and state government to bring opportunities to fruition.
6
We have been fortunate to establish a number of relationships with key investors and businesses in China (hosted over 12 delegations and met with many other investors directly)
It is important to continue to grow and nurture these relationships which is why we host specific delegations and also participate in targeted delegations to China. CONSTANT COMMUNICATION CAN BE A VERY DIFFICULT EXERCISE.
Through these delegation visits we are:
•
Working with other tiers of government
•
Opening up new export opportunities for local businesses (AND TRYING TO FIND APPROPRIATE SCALE AND PRICE POINTS)
•
Pursuing further opportunities for industry collaboration and innovation (LARGER DELEGATION OF INVESTORS LATER THIS YEAR)
•
Encouraging direct foreign investment in infrastructure and
7
•
Fostering joint ventures between companies (ACTING AS A FACILITATOR)
We are extremely excited by the level of interest in our city to date and are working vigorously to capitalise on this and realise the vision of our economic strategy
7
Thank you
8