ATC230804: Report on the Joint Study Tour to Germany by the Select Committee on Trade and Industry, Economic Development, Small Business Development, Tourism, Employment and Labour together with the Select Committee on Transport, Public Service and Administration, Public Works and Infrastructure from 3 to 7 July 2023, dated 1 August 2023

NCOP Trade & Industry, Economic Development, Small Business, Tourism, Employment & Labour

Report on the Joint Study Tour to Germany by the Select Committee on Trade and Industry, Economic Development, Small Business Development, Tourism, Employment and Labour together with the Select Committee on Transport, Public Service and Administration, Public Works and Infrastructure from 3 to 7 July 2023, dated 1 August 2023

 

The Select Committee on Trade and Industry, Economic Development, Small Business Development, Tourism, Employment and Labour together with the Select Committee on Transport, Public Service and Administration, Public Works and Infrastructure, having undertaken a joint study tour to Germany from 3 to 7 July 2023, reports as follows:

 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

1.     Study Tour Objectives. 2

2.     Germany Country Profile. 4

3.     Delegation. 5

4.     German Co-operative and Raiffeisen Confederation. 6

4.1. Stakeholder Profile. 6

4.2. Observations. 7

4.3. Recommendations. 9

5.     Germany Trade And Invest. 10

5.1.  Stakeholder Profile. 10

5.2.  Observations. 11

5.3.  Recommendations. 12

6.     CITY OF HAMBURG AGENCY FOR GEOINFORMATION AND SURVEYING.. 13

6.1.  Stakeholder Profile. 13

6.2.  Observations. 14

6.3.  Recommendations. 15

7.     CITY SCIENCE LAB AT HAFENCITY UNIVERSITY. 15

7.1.  Stakeholder Profile. 15

7.2.  Observations. 16

7.3.  Recommendations. 17

8.     UNITED NATIONS INNOVATION TECHNOLOGY ACCELERATOR FOR CITIEs. 18

8.1.  Stakeholder Profile. 18

8.2.  Observations. 19

8.3.  Recommendations. 20

9.     Federal Government Co-Ordinator for Maritime and Tourism.. 21

9.1. Stakeholder Profile. 21

9.2. Observations. 22

9.3. Recommendations. 23

 

PART A: OVERIEW

 

1.Study tour objectives

 

1. The study tour was informed by the South African government’s commitment to creating a developmental state, reshaping the structure of the South African economy, driving socio-economic transformation and the provision of public infrastructure and transport systems that meets the County’s needs. These commitments are expressed in various governmental policy documents such as the National Development Plan (NDP) with its complementary policy strategies, the Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan (ERRP) and Re-imagined Industrial Strategy; and the National Infrastructure Plan (NIP) and White Paper on the National Rail Policy.

 

1. The provision of public infrastructure and reliable, efficient, and affordable public transport is a key requirement for both economic growth and sustaining the livelihoods of households and communities. An active citizenry must be able to access government services, economic opportunities and social networks within the community. Challenges such as growing demands in respect of the provision of public infrastructure and public transport are even more pronounced in rural areas where factors such as reduced economies of scale and challenging geotechnical conditions must be considered. The imperative to attain inclusive and sustainable economic growth has heightened socio-economic challenges and risks and need to be tackled urgently.

 

1. Within this context, the Select Committee on Trade and Industry, Economic Development, Small Business Development, Tourism, Employment and Labour together with the Select Committee on Transport, Public Service and Administration, Public Works and Infrastructure (“the Select Committees”) have identified the Federal Republic of Germany as a suitable country for undertaking a Study Tour. This was informed by Germany’s experience in attaining economic structural change and socio-economic transformation developmental imperatives. The study tour included opportunity for the Select Committees to engage with stakeholders on the identification of approaches to public infrastructure provision and public transport that addresses current challenges and imperatives, ranging from socio-economic imperatives (such as the development of pro-poor and gender sensitive approaches) to technological challenges (such as aging infrastructure) and environmental imperatives (such as resilience to environmental shocks). The wider programme focused on legislative oversight, policy and programme design and implementation and governance structures.

 

1. The study tour engagements have strengthened the capacity of the Select Committees to engage with policy and programme level considerations and propose alternative service delivery models and approaches. At the commencement of each engagement, the
   co-chairpersons leading the delegation afforded the Select Committee members the opportunity to introduce themselves and emphasised that a multi – party delegation, that included members from both the ruling party and opposition parties, was undertaking the study tour.  Following the introductions, the co-chairpersons explained the similarities and differences in respect of the structure of government in Germany and South Africa and provided an overview of the South African parliamentary system, including the roles of the respective Select Committees. The co-chairpersons also introduced the departments over which the Select Committees conduct oversight and the key strategic policies and legislation that were applicable to the particular engagement.

 

1. During the study tour, the opportunity was also used to experience the public transport system in Germany. The delegation travelled between meetings in Berlin and Hamburg with an Eurail  High – Speed (up to 300km/h)  Intercity Express Train. Interrail and Eurail operates more than 250,000 km of interconnected railways across 33 different countries. The Eurail Group, based in Utrecht, is responsible for the marketing and management of the Eurail and Interrail passes.

 

 

 

 

2.Germany Country Profile

 

1. During the study tour, Mr Willie Van Der Westhuizen, Charge d’Affaires at the South African Embassy in Germany, met with the delegation and provided a Country profile of Germany. The structure and authority of Germany’s government are derived from the Country’s constitution, the Grundgesetz (Basic Law) of May 23, 1949. In terms of the Grundgesetz, Germany has a parliamentary system and its government is organised under a federal system. The constitutional framework of Germany and South Africa, respectively, share a number of features. The first of these is the formal declaration of the principles of human rights. The second key shared feature is the strong independent position of the courts, especially in light of the powers of the Federal Constitutional Court in Germany and the Constitutional Court in South Africa to declare laws unconstitutional and therefore null and void.

 

1. The Bundestag is the German Federal Parliament and currently consists of 736 members (the precise number of members varies depending on election results). Half of the Bundestag’s members are elected to represent single-seat constituencies and half are elected through proportional representation.

 

1. The Bundestag and the Landtag (state parliaments) may pass concurrent legislation on certain matter and the Bundestag may set out certain guidelines for legislation. Each individual Landtag may enact legislation in keeping with its own needs and circumstances, for application in its jurisdiction. The overarching principle is that the Bundestag initiates or approves legislation on matters in which uniformity is essential, and the Landtag are otherwise free to pass laws  within the limitations of the Basic Law.

 

1. The German Bundesrat (Federal Council) represents the sixteen Länder (federated states) of Germany at the federal level and currently consists of 69 members. Bundesrat delegations represent the interests of the state governments and are bound to vote unanimously as instructed by their provincial governments.

 

1. The German president (currently Mr  Frank - Walter Steinmeier) is the formal chief of state and is chosen for a five - year term by a specially convened assembly. The powers and functions of the president includes, amongst other, signing all federal legislation and treaties, nominating the federal chancellor and the chancellor’s cabinet appointments, appointing federal judges and the right of pardon and reprieve. The government is headed by the chancellor (currently Mr Olaf Scholz) , who is elected by a majority vote of the Bundestag upon nomination by the president. Vested with considerable independent powers, the chancellor is responsible for initiating government policy. The cabinet and its ministries also enjoy extensive autonomy and powers of initiative. Most cabinet officials are members of the Bundestag, but the chancellor may appoint persons without party affiliation who have a certain area of technical competence.

 

1. In Germany all the trial and courts of appeal are state courts while the courts of last resort are federal courts All courts may hear cases based on law enacted on the federal level, although there are some areas of law over which the states have exclusive control. In addition to the courts of general jurisdiction for civil and criminal cases, the highest of which is the Federal Court of Justice, there are four court systems with specialised jurisdiction in administrative, labour, social security, and tax matters. Although all courts have the power and the obligation to review the constitutionality of government action and legislation within their jurisdiction, only the Federal Constitutional Court (Bundesverfassungsgericht) may declare legislation unconstitutional.

 

3.Delegation

 

3.1.Members of Parliament

 

Hon Mmoiemang, Mr MK           African National Congress (ANC)          :           Chairperson

Hon Rayi, Mr MI                       ANC                                                     :           Chairperson

Hon Moshodi, Ms MI                 ANC

Hon Dangor, Mr M                    ANC

Hon Mamaregane, ML   ANC

Hon Brauteseth, Mr T                Democratic Alliance (DA)

Hon Boshoff, Ms HS                 DA

Hon Londt, Mr JJ                      DA

 

 

3.2.Committee Support Officials

 

Ms Noziphiwo Dinizulu Committee Secretary

Dr Anneke Clark                       Content Advisor

 

PART B: STUDY TOUR ENGAGEMENTS

4.German Co-operative and Raiffeisen Confederation

 

4.1.Stakeholder Profile

 

1. The German Co-operative and Raiffeisen Confederation (Deutsche Genossenschafts - und Raiffeisenverband) (DGRV) is the national apex (above the local, regional and national level) confederation and auditing federation for co-operatives in Germany. The delegation held a virtual meeting with the DGRV due to the fact that the Confederation’s offices are located in Bonn, 600 km from Berlin.  The presentation was delivered by
   Ms Nina Hildebrandt, Team Leader for the African Region at the DGRV.

 

1. The DGRV is mandated to promote its members’ interests by executing several statutory obligations including, amongst other, promoting and strengthening co-operatives and
   co-operative audits; legal and tax advice; coordination of education and training services and supporting the establishment of new cooperatives.

 

1.  The presentation started with the historical progression of co-operatives, which has a long history in Germany, dating back to the year 1864. Ms Hildebrandt provided an overview of the co-operative sector in Germany with 5 000 co-operatives (19.6 million members) being responsible for 1 million jobs across the finance, energy, agriculture, trade / service, housing and consumption, renewable energy, Information Technology (IT), laboratory operation, education and training, disposal, recycling and environment protection and transport sectors.

 

1. To illustrate the reach of co-operatives, 98 % of all farmers, 60 % of all craftsmen, 75 % of all retailers, 90% of all bakers and butchers and 65 % of all accountants are members of a co-operative. The profile of the various co-operative sectors are tabuled below.

 

 

 

Co-Operative Sector	No. of Co-Operatives	No. of Members	Turnover / Balance Sheet Total
Banks	772	18,200,000	R 1145 billion
Agricultural	1729	1,500,000	R 68 billion
Trade and marketing	1462	400,000	R175.1 billion
Energy	847	200,000	R 1 billion
Consumer and service	458	300,000	R 1 billion

Source: Presentation on Cooperatives in Germany: Support of the Medium Sized Economy by Ms Nina Hildebrandt.

 

1. DGRV has supported three pilot provinces in South Africa namely the Kwazulu-Natal, Gauteng and the Eastern Cape. This has included:

 

• Training to co-operatives in the agriculture, services and financial sectors about
  co-operative values and  principles; governance; financial management; and leadership.
• The establishment of exchange platforms for finance and youth co-operatives in KwaZulu- Natal and the Eastern Cape.
• Facilitation and support to traditional leaders to promote an understanding of
  co-operatives and the establishment of co-operatives banks.
• Facilitating emerging bakery groups access to training, technical assistance, mentoring and business management guidance.

 

4.2.Observations

 

1. Co-operatives are underpinned by the values of self- help, self-responsibility, democracy, equality, equity and solidarity and the following principles:

 

• Voluntary and open membership;
• Democratic member control;
• Autonomy and independence;
• Education, training and information;
• Co-operation among co-operatives; and
• Concern for community.

 

1. The advantage of the co-operative structure includes that it is a catalyst for sustainable economic growth as it is flexible enough to accommodate changing member needs. An illustration of this is that initially commercial banks provided banking services to
   co-operatives but that co-operative banks are now fully licensed banks which provide banking services to its members.

 

1. Co-operative banks operate alongside commercial banks and the Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe (Savings Banks Financial Group). The latter comprises of, amongst other, sparkassens,  regional banks (landesbanken), regional building societies and  insurance companies. Its umbrella organisation is the Deutsche Sparkassen- und Giroverband (DSGV – German Savings Banks Association). Sparkassen are public – sector entities which provide services including, amongst other, property financing, saving and investing products, insurance, retirement provisions and corporate banking.  

 

1. Other advantages of co-operatives are that it allows members to access credit and markets and creates more favourable purchasing power for members. The impact of co-operatives increase exponentially as more co-operatives co-operate with each other rather than operating locally only. A proposed pathway for such co-operation is to progress from associations to co-operatives then to the establishment of co-operatives associations (at the local, regional and national level) and finally to international exchanges.

 

1.  Historically, co-operatives have struggled with shortcomings related to corporate governance and member oversight over the functioning of the co-operative. This led to the introduction of mandatory audits for co-operatives. Other challenges have been the reality of structural inequalities, poverty and marginalisation and lack of access to markets, financial services, work equipment and sales markets, new technologies and expertise.

 

1. DGRV support during the pandemic was in the form of successfully lobbying for amendments to legislative requirements for in-person and paper-based sign-off processes.

 

4.3.Recommendations

 

1.  Based on the experience of the DGRV, the Co-operatives Development Support Programme of the Department of Small Business Development  should incorporate the following factors, that has contributed towards the successful operations of
   co-operatives, into its Support Programme:

 

• Each co-operative needs to be economically viable in its market;
• Co-operatives must be professionally managed;
• Members must be aware of and execute their duties;
• Co-operatives should be integrated into a strong co-operative organisation with a strong and decentralised multi-level co-operative system. Regional and national unions should provide support (audit, consultancy, training) to co-operative enterprises; and
• The State should provide a supportive legislative and regulatory framework for
  co-operatives.

 

1. During the banking crisis of 2007 and 2008, no banking co-operates  in Germany had to request financial injections (commonly known as bail – outs). This was attributed to the deposit and protection system through which the risk profiles of member banks were continually evaluated, and interventions put in place timeously. The Co-operative Banks Development Agency was established in South Africa to regulate, promote and develop co-operative banking and should encourage a similar practice amongst co-operative banks in South Africa.

 

1.  The Select Committees to undertake oversight visits to some of the co-operatives supported by the DGRV in Kwazulu-Natal, Gauteng and the Eastern Cape to support the sustainable continuation of these co-operatives.

 

5.Germany Trade And Invest

 

5.1.Stakeholder Profile

 

1. The delegation from the Germany Trade and Invest (GTAI) was led by the Senior Manager: Africa/ Middle East, Dr Marcus Knupp. The GTAI is the Country’s economic development agency at the federal level. The GTAI operates 60 offices internationally, including in South Africa. GTAI identifies suitable investment opportunities in Germany through export promotion, investor consulting and location marketing. Its services include offering advisory and project support at all stages of the investment process for business start-ups in Germany.

 

1. GTAI provides project management assistance, location consulting/site evaluation and support services. Its project management assistance include business opportunity analysis and market research through providing comprehensive access to in-depth information relating to Germany’s future industries, successful markets and profitable clusters. It also includes coordination and support of negotiation with local authorities. GTAI location consulting/site evaluation services include the identification of project - specific location factors such as operating and logistic costs, tax and labour regulations. GTAI support services include the identification of relevant tax and legal issues at the European Union, national and regional levels and assistance with regulatory bodies at a local authority level.

 

1. GTAI focuses its support on several signature industries, including, amongst other, industrial production, energy and mobility. In respect of energy,  the European Green Deal, 2019, is a European Commission strategy aimed at making Europe the first climate-neutral continent. Key actions of the Green Deal relate to the circular economy, transport, biodiversity, sustainable finance, agriculture, and the mainstreaming of sustainability in all EU policies. Specific initiatives include the introduction of a carbon border tax, the buildings renovations with a focus on sustainability and a just energy transition mechanism.

 

1. A relatively recent focal point of GTAI is the promotion of regions undergoing structural change or challenged by structural weaknesses as well as those areas affected by the coal phase-out planned for Germany. The national commitment is to phase-out coal by the year 2030.  Through its Regions in Structural Transformation (ISW programme) support is provided to these regions in the form of inbound delegation trips and investor events focused on specific industries.

 

1. Through its Task Force Transformation Unit, the GTAI focus is on the economic transformation of refinery sites and ports located in former Eastern Germany. The region is challenged by historical structural disadvantages emanating from the 1950 / 1960’s period during which it formed part of the Soviet Union Bloc. After the unification of Germany, these industries were introduced to international competition and struggled to continue operating viably. These historical factors have been compounded by the impact of the trade embargo with Russia due to the war in Ukraine. The economic transformation of the regions is also aligned the national strategic decision to reduce dependence on Russian oil.

 

5.2.Observations

 

1. Germany is signatory to more than 140 international bilateral or multilateral  investment treaties.  There is however a move towards abolishing such treaties in favour of treaties where the European Union is a signatory. The GTAI has confirmed the Country’s continued participation in the European Union given the advantages it provides to Germany that is strategically located within the european market.

 

1. In February 2023 the GTAI led an outbound delegation to Johannesburg, South Africa, which was focused on the hydrogen sector. The investor events were attended by experts across the hydrogen generation and provision value chain. Other participants included representatives from automotive and aerospace associations. A further outbound delegation has been identified for Cape Town, South Africa, in 20224 although the industry focus has not yet been identified.

 

1.  It was confirmed that German import of coal has for the current period increased. This was attributed to the fact that during the transition to phasing out coal, expensive but stable fossil fuel energy sources are being replaced with fluctuating renewable sources which must still be supplemented. Furthermore, countries like Germany assists other European Union countries during periods of energy shortages. Germany provided such assistance when power plants in France were recently not operating.

 

1. Independent Power Producers (IPP’s) contribute significantly to energy production in the Country. At present, renewable sources account for at 60% of energy production in Germany with the energy reliability factor in the Country being close to 100%. IPP’s are incentivised through feed - in tariffs, VAT rebates and support from Public Investment Bank loans.

 

1. France and Germany have extended €600 million in financing to support South Africa’s transition from coal as part of its Just Transition Plan. The two countries have signed loan agreements to each extend €300 million in concessional financing to South Africa.

 

1. A strong system of vocational training is necessary to complement reskilling of a workforce who are impacted when areas experiencing structural challenges transition to new industries.

 

5.3.Recommendations

 

1. The Department of Trade, Industry and Competition Invest SA investment promotion agency should be guided by a strategic focus of attracting business opportunities that increase the resilience of local market by complementing, reinforcing and strengthening local markets and local value chains.

 

1.  In respect of the outbound delegation identified for South Africa in 2024, the GTAI should be encouraged to extend the visit to include delegation visits to former coal-mining areas to identify areas of mutual interest in respect of economic transition for such areas, including possible transition to hydrogen generation and provision.

 

1. The GTAI cautioned the Select Committee that studies undertaken by the United Nations  have shown that in developing countries, the  Special Economic Zones (SEZ) model has been shown to exacerbate market and socio - economic inequality. The parliamentary research section is to be requested to prepare a research paper on international experiences of SEZ’s  in developing countries.

 

6.City of Hamburg Agency for Geoinformation and Surveying

 

6.1.Stakeholder Profile

 

1. Dr. Nicole Schubbe from the City of Hamburg Agency for Geoinformation and Surveying delivered the presentation on the digitisation of data in support of public infrastructure decision making. The agency is responsible for, amongst other, maintaining the register of immovable property (the Cadastre) located in Hamburg, the appraisal of property values, the production of cartographic products such as arial maps and the management of urban geo-data.

 

1. The City of Hamburg in 2012 introduced the Hamburg Transparency Law
   (“the Transparency Law”), which stipulates that all contracts over €100,000, grant awards, reports, public plans, senate resolutions, spatial data, construction or demolition permits, and key city corporate data, must be publicly accessible online. Certain protections were put in place to protect personal information. The Transparency Law was aligned to the European Union INSPIRE directive which came into force on 15 May 2007. The Directive was aimed at ensuring compatibility across the spatial data infrastructures of  member states so that it could be usable in a transboundary context.

 

1. Following the introduction of the Transparency Law, the Hamburg Data Platform[1] and Urban Data Hub[2] ( hereinafter together referred to as “the Data Portal”) was launched in 2017 under the guiding principles of interoperability, multiple use, digital availability, standardisation, privacy and user - orientation. The data on the online portal includes national and European Union level data and is available for public use, including research, development and consulting. Given the concern surrounding the vulnerability of key infrastructure points amidst the Russian-Ukraine War, certain information related to infrastructure has for the period been restricted.  

 

1. Information on the Data Portal, data can be accessed via databases with visual data analytic tools (e.g. dashboards and three dimensional (SD) models) also being available. The data can also be used by application (APP) developers to create, for example, an APP to navigate through traffic more efficiency.

 

1. A standardised data interface and network infrastructure is necessary to allow government departments generating data (data owners) to share such data in real time. Real time data available through the data platforms include information on traffic counting stations, bike sharing stations and traffic lights.

 

6.2.Observations

 

1.  Hosting of the Data Portal is possible through teams from, amongst other, research and development (technical, conceptual and content aspects), consulting (data access, data distribution and data analytics aspects) and operations (metadata and infrastructure aspects). Specialists were employed to assist data owners to integrate their data into the platforms as such specialists are familiar with the mapping of the existing data on the platform.

 

1. The Data Portal receives approximately 1 Billion data access requests annually. Requiring individual data access requests via e-mail addresses was viewed as introducing unnecessary access hurdles.  

 

1. The starting point for replicating the Data Portal in other states should be to build on existing data systems. This was the approach used with the Namibian State Agency of Urban Planning that already had a system with databases on housing, mobility, infrastructure and informality. It might then be necessary to work with other government departments and local NGO’s and communities to fill gaps by collecting  geo-tagged data.  

 

1. Data Portal implementation partnerships should be aimed at the joint use of data, independent sustainable data development, and data sovereignty.  Data sovereignty refers to the fact that data and the use thereof is subject to the laws and governance structures of the jurisdiction within which it is collected.

6.3.Recommendations

 

1.  The Department of Public Service and Administration Centre for  Public Service Innovation (CPSI) should be referred to the City of Hamburg Agency for Geoinformation and Surveying Innovation with the aim of exploring the possibility of replicating the Data Portal system in South Africa.

 

1.  The Department of Basic Education should ensure that coding is offered as early as the primary school level and that especially girls should be encouraged to learn to code as there is currently a shortage of female coders.

 

1. The operation of the online portal is informed by the Hamburg Digital Strategy[3], 2020. The strategy promotes digitisation as a task for the whole city and the approach that digitalisation is not an end in itself. Any replication of the Data Portal in South Africa must therefore demonstrate tangible usefulness and benefits (such as relieving the burden on people or solving concrete problems).

 

7.City Science Lab at HafenCity University

 

7.1.Stakeholder Profile

 

1. The City Science Lab at the HafenCity University Hamburg investigates urban challenges in the era of digitalisation in cooperation with partners from civil society, politics, economy, and science. It pursues an inter - and - transdisciplinary perspective by linking technical issues with social and cultural developments. Dr Gesa Ziemar, the Director of the City Science Lab (“ the Lab”) introduced the work of the Lab and provided an overview of the tools developed through the Lab’s partnerships.

 

1. The Lab develops digital city models (so-called “City Scopes”) based on comprehensive urban data to visualise and simulate complex urban development processes. The tool is used to visualise a city at three different scales being the city,  district and neighbourhood scale. It was used during the “Finding Places” project emanating from the need to provide accommodation for refugees. The city saw an influx of approximately 40,000 refugees within a three - month period over 2014 and 2015. The objective was to find public space that could be earmarked to build accommodation for refugees. Then then mayor,
   Mr Olaf Schultz approached the Lab to initiate a stakeholder engagement process for this purpose.

 

1. The stakeholder engagement process was used to obtain information on occupation / usage  levels and ownership of public open space such as parks. Participants did not  have to register political affiliation or profession, and everyone was given equal voice. The engagement was productive and constructive and the absence of public violence against refugees was credited to the stakeholder participation process. Through this process accommodation was found for 20 000 persons and the identified areas provided to the Central Committee of Refugee Coordination. The refugees have since entered the regular housing market and with the start of the Russian – Ukraine war the empty accommodation units have been used to house Ukrainian refugees.  

 

1. Another tool developed by the City Science Lab is the Cockpit for Social Infrastructure (CoSI), which is a digital analysis and planning tool, which bundles, visualises, and integrates statistical and georeferenced data to planners of social infrastructure in identifying needs and accelerating planning processes, by means of an easily accessible user interface. CoSI maps household aggregates on a neighbourhood level but does not  reflect the number of occupants per household, to protect such personal information. It can further identify existing social infrastructure within a particular given circumference.  

 

1. The "LIG Project" was undertaken in partnership between the State Authority for Real Estate Management and Land Properties and the City Science Lab in the field of data-based strategic land and urban development.

 

7.2.Observations

 

1. The work of the Lab is funded by public funds to the University, research funding to researchers or the lab as well as funding from foundations. There is therefore the possibility that municipalities in South Africa could benefit through linkages with the Lab without having to make a financial contribution.

 

1. The delegation was introduced to PaKOMM, which is a research project in collaboration with g2lab (Geoinformatics and Geovisualisation) at HafenCity University and FTZ Digital Reality (Research and Transfer Center) at Hamburg University of Applied Sciences (HAW). Members interacted with the integrative solutions for digital citizen participation in the form of mixed reality approaches such as touch table, screen, virtual reality and artificial reality. Such approaches are said to improve spatial awareness in respect of the built environment, public infrastructure and transport infrastructure. It also adds a gaming experience into the public participation process with more intuitive and accessible experience for users of all ages.

 

1. The delegation linked the tools presented by the Lab to the drone and shot spotter technology of the City of Cape Town Metropolitical Municipality. The technology is current intended for application in increasing safety in neighbourhoods. Its arial photography capabilities however makes it suitable for the generation of geo-tagged data.  The delegation was introduced to Flying Labs that also operates in South Africa and  provide drone services in disaster management.

 

1.  In respect of the “Finding Places” project, the delegation expressed interest in the support the government is providing to Ukrainian refugees. Dr Ziemar  indicated that the federal government provides financial support, permits that allow refugees to work and assistance with health care. German households can also volunteer to house a family in their home via a government managed system.

 

7.3.Recommendations

 

1.  It is recommended that the Minister of Co-Operative Governance and Traditional Affairs extend an invitation to Dr Ziemar and her team to provide a presentation about City Science Lab tools at a Technical Ministers and Members of Executive Councils Meeting (MINMEC) for consideration as to how the tools may be applied for municipal decision making.

 

1.  The LIG Project details should be referred to the Property Management Trading Entity of the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure, for consideration as to how the tools may be extended to allow for the verification of the state-owned property register.

 

8.United Nations Innovation Technology Accelerator for Cities

 

8.1.Stakeholder Profile

 

1. The United Nations Innovation Technology Accelerator for Cities (UNITAC-Hamburg) is a collaboration between UN-Habitat, the UN Office for ICT (OICT) and HafenCity University. The Accelerator works with a variety of innovation, prototyping and applied research methodologies to develop innovative solutions that accelerate the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals related to cities and urbanisation. The presentation was delivered by Ms Livia Nonose, Technology and Innovations Specialist at UNITAC.

 

1. UNITAC Hamburg is part of the “People-Centred Smart Cities” Flagship program of UN-Habitat, which provides strategic and technical support on digital transformation to national, regional and local governments.

 

1. Projects developed under UNITAC-Hamburg include supporting eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality’s Human Settlements Unit (HSU) in its efforts to improve data accessibility and management. The objective was to help the municipality improve its land monitoring process. To assist the city in automating their building mapping process, the UNITAC team developed the Building & Establishment Automated Mapper  (BEAM) software that uses machine learning to radically accelerate the spatial recognition of informal settlements and structures based on aerial imagery. In this way, the city can have up-to-date records of the location and extent of its informal settlements, as well as to keep track of changes in the built-up area or density. BEAM is an open source and easy-to-use tool that allows the user to quickly detect and visualise the rooftops of buildings in a specific area by simply uploading aerial images of a given location.

 

1. Ms A Fortuin from the African Centre for Cities at the University of Cape Town introduced the delegation to the recently launched Urban Academy, which is a collaboration between UNITAC, a partnership between the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat), the United Nations Office for Information and Communication Technology (UN OICT), and the City Science Lab. The Urban Academy focuses on three research themes namely open, transparent and participatory governance, socio-spatial analysis, digital data and new forms of work and people-centred smart cities and service delivery.

 

8.2.Observations

 

1. There are plans to upscale the BEAM tool for application in the City of Cape Town and Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan municipalities.  

 

1.  The Digital Integrated Participation   (DIPAS) tool was used by UNITAC for the purpose of citizen engagement on possible river corridor development in Botswana. The use of the tool complemented other forms of public participation such as community meetings. DIPAS was used to capture public inputs on various development options and the anticipated impact (e.g on transport systems) of such options. The DIPAS tool can be used at various stages of the project, programme and project development for the purpose of obtaining stakeholder input.  Feedback on the use of the system included that in addition to the maps, pictures for the geographic location should also be incorporated into the tool to assist stakeholders in orientating themselves when using the tool.

 

1. The delegation drew linkages between the DIPAS tool and the possibility of increasing participation levels in participatory planning processes such as Integrated Development Planning. The system can also be accessed via a QR code mobile phones.  The user does not have to be online for the duration of using the tool and it can also be linked to WhatsApp and social media platforms such as Facebook as many users purchase data bundles that limit online accessibility to such platforms.

 

1. The delegation interacted with the tools and various system options such as data filtering, overlaying different data sets and commenting on other people’s contributions. Upon enquiry about the availability of voice note functionality from the delegation, the response was that it could be a further area of development and could be accompanied by speech – to – text functionality.  Experience from other projects has however shown that with voice note public input functionality, people tend to take on a conversational tone and often do not (in comparison to written input) provide concise inputs.

 

1. The Federal Department of Economic Development and Co-operation is financing the development and application of a City Resilience Tool in Namibia and Ukraine. The tool helps cities to analyse risk, potential shocks, threat related to climate, climate change, and to improve resilience.

 

1. UNITAC has cautioned that in the establishment of Smart Cities, local contexts, including the  needs, demands and challenges of the intended inhabitants must be taken into consideration and the focus cannot be exclusively on delivering technology as a final process.

 

8.3.Recommendations

 

1. UNITAC has developed various People – Centred Smart City “Playbooks”, this includes playbooks on  Shaping Co-creation  and Collaboration in Smart Cities and on Addressing the Digital Divide.  The playbooks are to be brought to the attention of the Department of Co-Operative Governance and Traditional Affairs for consideration during the review of its South African Smart Cities Framework.

 

1. It is recommended that the Minister of Co-Operative Governance and Traditional Affairs extend an invitation to UNITAC to provide a presentation about its tools at a Technical Ministers and Members of Executive Councils Meeting (MINMEC) for consideration as to how the tools may be applied in municipal participatory planning processes.

 

1. The Select Committees to hold a follow-up engagement with the African Centre for Cities in respect of any research that has identified regulatory, policy or legislative gaps  in respect of public transport, public infrastructure and people centre smart cities.

 

9.Federal Government Co-Ordinator for Maritime and Tourism

 

9.1.Stakeholder Profile

 

1. The engagement was led by Mr Dieter Janeck, the Federal Government’s
   co-ordinator for maritime and tourism. The role of the co-ordinator, who is based in the Economic Affairs Ministry is to co-ordinate all measures for strengthening Germany’s competitiveness in the fields of shipbuilding, marine technology, offshore wind energy, shipping and ports. The National Masterplan for Maritime Technologies (NMMT) is the Federal Government’s central instrument to strengthen the maritime sector in Germany. It is designed to co-ordinate and interconnect the maritime industry.

 

1. Germany’s Maritime Agenda 2025 sets out a wide range of measures to be deployed across nine fields of action of the maritime industry. The government also seeks to work with the business community to devise a roadmap that describes the priorities of their applied research funding programmes and how the innovation capacity of SMEs is to be strengthened. Digitisation is another key focus of the Maritime Agenda 2025 and to this end high-speed broadband connections are to be expanded in ports and flagship projects, allowing  real-time services in navigation.  

 

1. Germany’s National Tourism Strategy was adopted in April 2019. The strategy aims to safeguard Germany’s success as a tourist destination on a long-term basis. The Strategy is oriented towards three overarching policy goals. The first of these is increasing domestic value add, thereby  fostering economic growth. Secondly, the quality of life of the people living in Germany is to be improved on a lasting basis. The third policy goal is to foster international stability. In the context of the programme entitled “enhancing performance and promoting innovation in the tourism sector” (LIFT), the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action is as from 2019 providing funding for innovative project ideas that serve as a model to make SMEs in the tourism sector fit for the future.

 

1. One of the catalytic projects in the Northern Sea is the upscaling of renewable energy production with the aim increasing capacity on windmills and wind energy production by 400 gigawatts within the next 20 years. The ports and harbours should therefore be able to accommodate the transportation and delivery of the components such as the large turbines. There is considerable investment in the Northern Sea, through partnerships with Norway (which is a leader in the maritime industry with new technologies including the electrification of ferries), the United Kingdom and the Netherlands.

 

1. Germany is in the process of finalising an international tourism strategy which will direct the focus of the sixteen (16) federal states and will include inculcating industry best practices such the digitisation of payments.  

 

9.2.Observations

 

1. One of the tourist attraction points is that Germany has a strong public transport system but making transport more reliable and especially for the rural areas of Germany has been identified as a need.  

 

1. The Country has an aging population, and it is anticipated that 7 million people will exit the labour market by 2035. There are already challenges in getting a large enough workforce in the service sector. It also requires that working conditions must be favourable enough to retain people otherwise they will go to other sectors. With an aging population, the imperatives are to increase productivity and growth and combine it with digitisation so that productivity can be sustained.

 

1.  The delegation enquired about the importance of cultural tourism as a distinct aspect of tourism.  The response was provided that cultural tourism plays an important role and to that end steps are taken to ensure that cultural and historical landmarks and site are preserved.

 

1. Globally, the impact of COVID has been a reduction in business travel. This was attributed to the options travellers now have for online meetings and conferences and working remotely.

 

1. Germany has reshaped its marketing activities after COVID – 19 with a focus sustainable

travel and the reduction of the carbon footprint of flights. There has therefore been a concerted effort to encourage travellers to remain in the Country longer to offset the environmental impact, including the carbon footprint, of air travel The extended stay does not necessarily have to involve accommodation in expensive hotels and expensive activities and could, for example, revolve around natural attractions or experiences outside of the major city centres. 

 

9.3.Recommendations

 

1. Whilst executive level relationships between South Africa and Germany are sound, there is a need to strengthen legislative sector relationships in the form of a Germany -South African working group. This is to be raised with the respective House Chairpersons of the South African parliament. 

 

1.  The Office of the Co-ordinator is to be requested to  provide a copy of the International Tourism Strategy (or an English version of the executive summary if the document is only available in German) upon completion of the Strategy.

 

Report to be considered.

 

 

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[1]          https://www.en.urbandataplatform.hamburg/

[2]          https://www.hamburg.de/bsw/urban-data-hub/

[3]    https://www.hamburg.de/contentblob/14924946/e80007b350f1abdc455cfaea7e8cd76c/data/download-digitalstrategie-englisch.pdf?userVariant=