Johannesburg — THE trade and industry department wants to oversee the governance of the various industrial development zones (IDZs) around the country, the department's deputy director- general, Lionel October, said at the weekend.

October said the department would next year take to Parliament a new governance framework for the IDZs. There was currently currently no uniform framework.

October said the department would propose "specialised" legislation which would see the department being responsible for the IDZs, whose funding for the IDZs would deriv from the national fiscus, he said.

October said bringing uniformity to the governance of the IDZs would boost foreign investor confidence. Currently the country's IDZs -- at East London, Coega and Richards Bay -- must convince companies to invest in their respective initiatives.

The East London and Coega IDZs currently report to the Eastern Cape economic affairs department. They get their funding from national and provincial governments.

Coega Development Corporation (CDC) spokeswoman Vuyelwa Qinga-Vika yesterday said the department's move was "very positive in terms of longer-term funding that facilitates better short-to-medium term planning for the CDC".

October said the department was satisfied with the pace at which the IDZs were attracting investors.

The East London IDZ on Friday officially launched a R100m automotive components plant. The joint venture has taken total investment in the IDZ to over R300m.

Other investors in the zone are glass maker Universe Safety Glass, abalone exporter Seatek and transport company Milltrans.

Foxtec-Ikhwezi, a joint venture between South African company Ikhwezi Investments and German automotive components maker Otto Fuchs, is the first operational automotive components manufacturer in the zone.

Otto Fuchs manufactures aluminium forged and extruded products. Ikhwezi Investment Holdings is a shareholder in Ikhwezi Automo tive, a supplier to the catalytic industry, and Ikhwezi Trucktek which assembles commercial vehicles for DaimlerChrysler SA.

East London IDZ is set to announce further investments later this year, says CEO Simphiwe Kondlo.

The company was in discussions with prospective investors in the so-called cleaner industries of pharmaceuticals, the automotive sector and agro-processing, Kondlo said.

Otto Fuchs MD Otto Fuchs said the company had decided to invest in the plant because of an increase in DaimlerChrysler's demand for forged suspension components of aluminium.