September 2014 No. 1 Case Study Series

The EDP story – building partnerships to boost the regional economy

Prepared by the Western Cape Economic Development Partnership (EDP).

Introduction

The Economic Development Partnership (EDP) was launched on 26 April 2012 as a collaborative intermediary organisation. Its mandate is to build, monitor, teach and support partnerships in order to improve the performance of the Western Cape’s economic development system and to foster a more competitive, inclusive and resilient regional economy.

History business and civil society, and what was actually needed were structured partnerships. In October 2010, the Partnership, The concept of an Economic Development under the leadership of , was Partnership (EDP) was taken to the Western celebrating the city’s successful participation Cape Government Cabinet, which accepted in the 2010 World Cup when new economic the proposal in August 2011. development MEC Alan Winde called to discuss the performance of the economic Alan Winde gave Boraine a year to get the EDP agencies in the Western Cape. Winde thought up and running, and he, together with Yumnaa that these agencies were underperforming, Firfirey, quickly got to work with a series of and asked Boraine to explore a model for road shows, first talking to all the government the restructuring of the various agencies bodies from DEDAT to Wesgro and the sector into a single economic development agency. development agencies. The discussion was Boraine and his team looked at the possibility broadened and potential partners included all of amalgamating all the government-funded levels of government (national, provincial and agencies but eventually went back to Winde local), municipal managers and mayors, the to suggest that while culling overheads was main business associations, the region’s four important, the biggest problem was that universities, social movements and organised government was not engaging properly with labour. Organisations were asked to indicate

THE EDP STORY – BUILDING PARTNERSHIPS TO BOOST REGIONAL ECONOMY 1 whether they would be interested in becoming to demonstrate the power of partnerships a member if a partnership body was formed. All with the Future of Agriculture and the Rural except Cosatu signed a declaration of interest Economy (FARE) process. For the first time in membership. the EDP was acting rather than talking, and the establishment of the FARE process took National Treasury’s Technical Assistance Unit, up huge resources as it involved getting as well as the Western Cape Government, adversaries involved in the process, raising provided funding for the design of the funds, running the process and delivering a partnership. While this was under way, the report. FARE was launched exactly a year after fledgling EDP launched an Economic CEO’s the launch of the EDP. Forum, which provided some insights into the partnership process. Boraine realised that Other projects were initiated, including work on bringing everyone together in a generalist way skills development and paths to employment doesn’t work, as it doesn’t necessarily translate and 2013 was used as a time to show the into action and stakeholders quickly become value added through delivery, which meant fatigued with ‘talkshops’. Most institutions that the establishment of the institution itself and organisations have specific interests and was neglected. This changed after a move to a more effective approach was to refine the the EDP’s current offices at the end of 2013, process into bilateral engagements based on whereupon there was an emphasis on building sector, thematic or geographic interests. a strong professional staff.

At the same time, (and before the EDP was officially launched in April 2012) the Economies of Regions Learning Network (ERLN) Focus was launched, demonstrating the EDP’s commitment to networking nationally. The The EDP’s work is categorised into four focus Western Cape Government also approached areas: Building Partnerships; Monitoring, the EDP to run the Future Cape process, Evaluating and Designing Partnerships; and a Contextual Report was published in Teaching Partnership Techniques and February 2012. When the Practices; and Supporting and Facilitating became a partner, Future Cape was renamed Partnerships. One Cape 2040 and the EDP had an busy time developing the One Cape 2040 vision while at Fifty percent of the EDP’s work is in building the same time selecting the EDP’s new board partnerships, and this is what drives the and putting a new institutional structure in EDP’s engagement strategy. Categories place. The first EDP Board meeting was held of partnership include sector-, theme- and on 28 August 2012, and a shared services spatially based partnerships. The FARE agreement between the EDP and the Cape process, for example, was about building Town Partnership was cemented. By now, the agricultural sector. Everyone working at the EDP’s first staff appointments had been the EDP has to show evidence of partnership made, and the Western Cape Government formation, and one of the internal systems Cabinet adopted the One Cape 2040 vision involves developing an understanding of the and framework in November 2012. stages of partnership, which is useful when it comes to teaching partnership techniques and At the end of 2012 the Western Cape farm practices. crisis broke out, and the EDP stepped in

THE EDP STORY – BUILDING PARTNERSHIPS TO BOOST REGIONAL ECONOMY 2 The second pillar of the EDP’s work is Techniques and Practices, and this involves the Monitoring, Evaluation and Design of the development of partnering models, Partnerships, and this involves the monitoring methodologies and practices; leadership of the performance of the regional economic development services; partnering case studies; development ecosystem in order to make and networking and knowledge sharing recommendations for improvement and through the EDP’s Partnership Exchange. support. The EDP team also coordinates economic data and business intelligence The fourth pillar is the Supporting and for evidence-based planning; undertakes Facilitation of Partnerships, which involves research and project development; and works dialogue and partnership facilitation services; on partnership design. the support of partnership building activities of the EDP members and stakeholders; and the The third pillar is the Teaching of Partnership generation of new leads and ideas.

CLASSIFICATION OF EDP ACTIVITIES AND SERVICES

Monitoring, Teaching Supporting and Building Evaluating and Partnership Facilitating Partnerships Designing Techniques and Partnerships

Focus areas Partnerships Practices

Catergories of Monitor Develop Dialogue and partnership: performance of the partnering models, partnership • Sector based regional economic methodologies and facilitation services • Theme based developmant eco- practices • Spatial based system and make Support partnership recommendations Collaborative building activities Types of for improvement leadership of our members, partnership: and support development partners and • Transversal services stakeholders • Inter- Coordinate governmental economic data Partnering case Generate new leads • Cross- and business studies and ideas boundary intelligence for • Cross-sector evidence-based Networking and Activities and Services planning knowledge sharing

Research and project development

Partnership design

THE EDP STORY – BUILDING PARTNERSHIPS TO BOOST REGIONAL ECONOMY 3 Challenges Conclusion

The EDP grapples with a variety of challenges, The EDP’s work is a combination of action, including: teaching and partnership design with a focus on • Historically adversarial relationships among data and intelligence. While the EDP is a non- government, the private sector and labour. profit organisation, it is focused on the needs of enterprises and firms, which differentiates it • A politically-charged environment, with a from government departments and agencies, limited history of bi-partisan approaches which tend to be supply side driven. As a non- to problem-solving profit, collaborative intermediary organisation, the EDP is able to provide an objective, neutral • Dominant corporate sector interests and a platform and facilitate cross-sector dialogue and fairly fragmented civil society. partnerships between government, business and civil society for the development of the Western • Mandate confusion, which means that Cape’s regional economic development system. some of the EDP’s public sector partners treat the EDP as a ‘service provider’ rather than working with the EDP to improve the References regional economic delivery system. Cloete, E, The Western Cape Economic • The need to demonstrate short-term ‘return Development Partnership as a collaborative on investment’ of stakeholder time, energy intermediary organisation: lessons for and funds, when in practice, partnership partnership practitioners, Annual Review of building needs longer-term participation. Social Partnerships.

• Sourcing of funding beyond the current one set of funders (the public sector). It is Acknowledgements challenging to secure funding for processes as opposed to projects with seemingly Written by Gill Cullinan for the EDP more concrete deliverables.

Telephone: 021 832 0200 Email: [email protected] Office Address: 10th Floor, 22 Riebeek Street, Cape Town, 8001 www.wcedp.co.za

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