History of the KZN CTC
The KwaZulu-Natal Clothing and Textile Cluster (KZN CTC) is a not-for-profit public/private sector partnership of clothing, textile, footwear and retail firms in KZN. Established in August 2005, the KZN CTC aims to boost the competitiveness of the local industry to ensure that it can compete in the global market.
Why clustering?
As the South African economy opens up to international competition, it is critical that firms collaborate and pool their resources to meet the intense competitiveness challenges that emerge. Clustering is therefore a progression from operating in isolation to recognising that there are certain support activities that can be better performed in conjunction with other firms confronting similar challenges.
The benefits of clustering include:
- Generating critical mass of resources
- Shared learning
- Supporting the rapid diffusion of ideas
- Collective action and risk sharing
- Reduced costs
- Enhanced ability to compete on a global platform
Objectives
Vision
Competitive South African clothing, textiles, footwear and leather value chains operating in alignment with international best practice.
Mission
Growth of the local sector through value chain alignment and the adoption of international best practice by all value chain actors.
Objectives
The attainment of world class value chain standards and socio-economic transformation for all member firms through collaboration, knowledge sharing, skills development, benchmarking and individual firm improvement.
Why our objectives matter
Our objectives are based on analysis of industry key performance metrics and consultation with key industry stakeholders to ensure industry relevance. The objectives are also aligned with the Industrial Policy Action Plan (IPAP) and the National Development Plan objectives, which emphasise the substantial role of clustering in industrial development.
Strategic focus areas
The key strategic focus of the KZN Clothing and Textile Cluster is to develop firms through focusing on firm level competitiveness, the value chains they operate in and the local and international clothing, textiles, footwear and leather industry they form a part of.
The KZN CTC’s programmes reflect the key strategic focus and comprise of the following:
Our founding principles
The founding constitutional principles of the KZN CTC are incorporated into its memorandum of incorporation under the New Companies Act and this governs the the activities of the KZN CTC. This specifies, among other things; objectives, membership requirements, decision-making processes and the process for appointing a facilitation service provider.
Facilitation
Cluster facilitation services are provided by an independent team from B&M Analysts appointed by the Executive Committee.
Founded in 1997, B&M Analysts’ primary areas of expertise and service provision include cluster facilitation, competitiveness benchmarking and upgrading, project management, training, and policy and strategy research services. These services are provided to government, non-government organisations (NGOs), clusters, industry associations, and manufacturing companies.
Compliance
The KZN CTC is a verified Level 4 B-BBEE contributor under the Codes of Good Practice for Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE). The KZN CTC complies with requirements outlined in the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA) and Public Finance Management Act (PFMA).