Local economic development assessment on the proposed nuclear power station at Thyspunt site in the Eastern Cape Province

Abstract

Globally, municipalities face difficulties of unequal and inadequate services to local communities. Kouga Local Municipality faces the challenges of unemployment and achieving equitable economic transformation as well as delivery of equitable, accessible services to improve the socio-economic lives of residents. In South Africa, municipalities are charged with local economic development to improve the livelihoods of residents. One of the main functions of a district municipality is to include a development framework of all municipalities that fall in its jurisdiction, hence the salience of Sarah Baartman District Municipality. This qualitative study assessed how the proposed nuclear power station at Thyspunt would impact local economic development in the Kouga region, using a sample of 100 managers and officials responsible for local economic development, 50 each, sourced from the district and local municipalities through purposive sampling. Having obtained ethical clearance from the Ethics Committee of the Faculty of Business and Management Sciences and permission from both the district and local municipalities, in-depth interviews were conducted with 22 managers and officials to collect relevant data. The data were analysed using thematic content analysis, yielding key findings from which conclusions were drawn and recommendations made that could assist officials dealing with local economic development in the selected municipalities. This study is significant because very little research has been done on local economic development aspects associated with nuclear energy.