Streamlining government services through digital solutions, the InvestSA One Stop Shop (OSS) Western Cape is the first in the country to launch a virtual online booking platform.
"As part of our continuous improvement in enhancing investor services and facilitation, the online booking platform is another innovative product in our One Stop Shop suite of service. This will make it easier for investors to connect and have meetings on investment," said Yunus Hoosen, Head of Investment South Africa
Tasked with investment facilitation and enhancing the ease of doing business in the Cape, the OSS is a collaborative platform between various arms of national, provincial and local government who endeavour to assist investors with navigating regulatory and administrative bottlenecks.
Through the OSS, potential investors can access national and provincial regulators including Home Affairs; Department of Labour; the Red Tape Reduction Unit; the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (dtic); SARS; the National Regulator of Compulsory Specifications (NRCS); Cape BPO; VFS Global, and the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC). On a provincial level, investors can access the Western Cape Government, City of Cape Town, Green Cape; Saldanha Bay Industrial Development Zone (IDZ) and the Atlantis Special Economic Zone (SEZ).
Strategically positioned to be the first point of entry for multinational corporations seeking to invest in Cape Town and the Western Cape, the ultra-modern, state-of-the-art OSS space was launched in 2017 in the heart of the Cape Town CBD in St George’s Mall. It is therefore perfectly positioned to accept ‘walk in’s’ from would be investors visiting the Mother City.
Prior to the global pandemic, the OSS already had plans in the pipeline to launch an online consultation option – making their services accessible to potential investors anywhere in the world. Now, in three simple steps, potential investors are able to view available dates and time slots of the chosen entity they wish to meet with, and to select their preferred virtual meeting platform from as many as six options, being MS Teams, Google Hangouts, WhatsApp, Zoom, Cisco Jabber or a conference call.
“In order to maximise our investment potential we need maximise our availability to potential investors, and this is exactly what our OSS online booking system enables. We are proud to be pioneering the way forward, encouraging other one stop shops to follow suit,” commented David Maynier, the Western Cape Minister of Finance and Economic Opportunities.
Alderman James Vos, added: “We pride ourselves on being Africa’s Tech Capital, and being the first one stop shop to expand our support to investors anywhere in the world through the option of a virtual consultation only strengthens our positioning. COVID-19 has acted as a catalyst to speed up the implementation of online solutions, and we look forward to the increased investment opportunities the online booking system will bring.”
“Queuing for hours in over-crowded government departments is no longer a safe or viable option. The launch of the online booking system is just another way we’re increasing the ease of doing business in Cape Town and the Western Cape, as well as making our support more accessible to not only investors abroad, but those within South Africa and Western Cape regions. We are open for business, and encourage local and international investors to book a consultation today with one of our sectorial specialists,” concluded Wesgro CEO, Tim Harris.
To access the platform, go to: https://www.wesgro.co.za/invest/one-stop-shop/book
02 February 2021