Coming Together Project

Bitou is the gateway into the Western Cape from the eastern part of South Africa with the Bloukrans River on the eastern boundary dividing the Western and Eastern Cape. The economy of the Bitou municipal area is the second smallest in the GRD. The Bitou Municipal area’s economy is mainly based on the wholesale and retail trade, catering and accommodation; construction; finance, insurance, real estate and business services; community, social and personal services, and agri-culture and fisheries sectors. These sectors and services are under-pinned by a healthy tourism sector that is seen to be the main economic driver in the area.

The Bitou LED strategy focuses on the agricultural and tourism sectors as the main local economic sectors. It includes growing the local agri-cultural sector (including honeybush tea farms and sceletium farming, agro-tourism, cattle, tunnel and poultry farming); forestry, oceans economy, construction activities, tourism and new resort and hotel developments.

FINANCE AND BUSINESS SERVICES

Bitou Municipality’s various service departments are currently spread over a number of offices scattered around the town of Plettenberg Bay. The municipality now intends to assess the feasibility of establishing a consolidated working environment in order to improve efficiency, accessibility and service delivery to the residents and community of Bitou Municipality. The land and buildings that become available in this process will be offered to private investors to create and enable economic development.