Hi Folks, our small coffee roasting business is based in East London, a medium sized city (small by international standards) on the South East coast of South Africa - the Eastern Cape Province. Let me start by saying that the East London Coffee team and our families truly enjoy living here. No, it's not a Utopian paradise for sure... with this in mind I will start with what is not particularly good, this of course being "my opinion" as a long-time resident rather than as an expert analyst!
Our City Fathers, being the council and the city's management group are at best, slow to make improvements and at worst, allowing our city to degrade, slowly but surely. Litter is commonplace; the verges and general neatness of the city is not what we, as residents, would wish for. Some poorer areas (often termed informal settlements) still battle to receive what one could call basic human needs, access to water; sewerage systems and electricity. Crime statistics have not improved over the years and (more of an SA macro issue than a local one) clinics and hospitals seem to be failing the poor who obviously need these the most. The main city beachfront has been neglected. I have heard that plans are afoot to close Marine Parade and to make this a pedestrian walkway which is sure to be an improvement.
My biggest personal gripe (if Council was to listen) would be the time it's taking to develop three primary tracts of land, namely the inner-city rail yards; the old army barracks/signal hill and the Marina Glen area. If suitable developments were to be progressed our ability to attract tourists and thereby to create much needed job opportunities would be significantly improved. If you ever ready this - come on guys, let's see some action!
To counter the reality of poor municipal management, a lot has indeed happened since 1994, a year of positive political change in South Africa. Locally, a new state of the art hospital has been built in Beacon Bay, a suburb which has seen two new malls being built; a business hub (coincidentally named "The Hub"); and a massive and modern complex of corporate offices in a lovely park like environment. A new mall was built at the bottom of Buffalo Street, one which quite uniquely has a taxi-rank incorporated inside. Another large mall (Hemingway's Casino/Hotel/Mall) was built along the N2 in Vincent; the Mdantsane Hospital has been upgraded and a new and reasonably successful Industrial Development Zone has been established along the Western shores of the city. Our airport has seen two upgrades and is about to experience another significant enlargement - needed due to increased air traffic, always a positive sign. The seaside suburb of Gonubie is home to a new mall, a lovely new High School and a completely rebuilt "double sized" access road. The link road between Beacon Bay and Gonubie is finally under construction. The beachfront plays host to a relatively new International Conference Centre along with the very impressive Regent Hotel. The somewhat famous Windmill Centre has been upgraded and now functions as East London's primary long distance bus station, a busy hub indeed.
Although building work was frustratingly slow, the overdue improvement to the Fleet Street/Oxford Street access roads is now complete and traffic flow has been considerably improved. There have been many other smaller developments such as many new restaurants; improvements to traffic calming; smaller suburban malls and others.
OK so is South Africa (or East London) a paradise?
No - I am however trying to present a balanced view and don't want to "bash SA" with every word as many do (particularly ex-pats; political opposition and headline grabbers). Life might not be ideal either in SA or East London but it's really not that bad either. On the down side, crime has worsened; our local currency is weak (this has good and bad points) and SA credit ratings have dropped. The SA nation is still dealing with political transition and corruption has been rife. This said, many of those guilty of corruption and so called "State Capture" are being reigned in and charged as I write. The education authorities have indeed failed their own electorate with too little progress evident by a continuously growing number of under educated pupils popping out of our school system. Many municipalities fail to pass the required national audit accreditation system and worse still, fail to deliver on their mandates. Let's not forget our Springbokke and Bafana Bafana (our rugby and football sides) both of whose performances can best be described as sub optimal.
Crime is not a daily concern as news headlines would lead others to believe. Suburban homes; offices and businesses (mostly) have alarm systems with armed response services; we secure our business premises and lock our car doors etc etc - don't you do this where you live? We "sleep easily" at night but are well aware of the need to take care. My own suburban (Beacon Bay) police station is efficient and the staff very helpful. Neither us, nor our immediate neighbors have ever experienced crime at our homes or offices. Yes a little down the street there was a robbery last year in a house while the owners were away on holiday. We have learned to be vigilant as is required in most cities throughout the world, there are always "bad areas" to be avoided in East London and I am sure in your own town as well. By absolute coincidence I have personally been robbed only twice, once in the Seychelles and once in Nice (France) both while on holiday.
The land invasion issue? I too have seen the international (and local) headlines. Much of the rhetoric has been political posturing and headline grabbing. No, the Govt. is not about to confiscate private homes and farms - research this properly before drawing conclusions and seek out only the official ANC statements on the matter - you will find that plans are being developed to use fallow state land (huge in number and size) first and there remains a certain positivity about the Govt. seeking to use idle land productively.
The land invasion issue? I too have seen the international (and local) headlines. Much of the rhetoric has been political posturing and headline grabbing. No, the Govt. is not about to confiscate private homes and farms - research this properly before drawing conclusions and seek out only the official ANC statements on the matter - you will find that plans are being developed to use fallow state land (huge in number and size) first and there remains a certain positivity about the Govt. seeking to use idle land productively.
Like many in SA right now (October 2018) we are looking forward to Cyril Ramaphosa, our new President, addressing many of these issues. This is a however a huge task which will take many years and not months. I say with frankness that I, like many who love SA, have been disappointed with progress over the last 20 or so years - I am sure I speak particularly for the unemployed and impoverished who have seen little change in their lives. But hey, we make do and keep looking forward with a positive attitude.
Back to East London
East Londoners enjoy one of the moderate and comfortable climates in the WORLD. With annual average midday temperatures of 22-26 deg, C what more can one ask for. Our coldest winter morning is around 7 deg.C - a summer high might reach 38 deg on isolated occasions - and those are really bad days for us. Yes, it can get windy at the winter/summer season change but let's be real, we live on the coast and this is to be expected.
Suburban middle class life in East London is, relatively speaking, quite good. Economic circumstances call for financial restraint here as they surely do throughout the world and particularly in so called emerging markets. East London's largest industry is the Daimler (Mercedes Benz) factory. Our plant is known to be one of the most efficient in the worldwide Daimler stable, I am told production of the new right hand drive C-Class will soon exceed 600 units per day!
Suburban middle class life in East London is, relatively speaking, quite good. Economic circumstances call for financial restraint here as they surely do throughout the world and particularly in so called emerging markets. East London's largest industry is the Daimler (Mercedes Benz) factory. Our plant is known to be one of the most efficient in the worldwide Daimler stable, I am told production of the new right hand drive C-Class will soon exceed 600 units per day!
In SA a US dollar goes a long way and the cost of living is relatively cheap compared to world standards. A pizza in a good restaurant for say USD 8; a good beer for USD 1 in a restaurant; a game of golf (member rate) on the 12th best golf course in South Africa for USD 15. Fuel, in my opinion is overpriced (largely due to high Government taxes) at USD 1.2. I would be remiss, being a coffee roaster, if I didn't mention that a world class cappuccino is available at any of our best coffee shops for only 2 USD. For overseas visitors, East London, the Eastern Cape and the whole of SA remains a low cost holiday destination. East London and our nearby Sunshine Coast regions, sadly, probably remains one of the worlds' best kept travel secrets!
Traffic? I have traveled the world over and never return without a smile when I see we are still a 20 minute city, 20 minutes from one end to the other in peak time. Our beaches (except perhaps the main beachfront) remain the best in the world. Best because they are clean, quiet compared to many others, and the water temperature is user friendly throughout the year - eat your heart out Cape Town! Our national road network is one of the best in the world - the SA Government (SANRAL) is busy with extensive road improvements throughout SA. In East London we are a few hours from some of the best game reserves in the world with a few private ones just on our doorstep. Here are a few of my own images.
East London enjoys four navigable rivers which many other cities simply cannot match. These are all usable for the leisure industry and many locals lap this up. Our schools? Brilliant, with some of the best matric results in the country. We also have Merriefield, a private school which runs the IEB syllabus as do the best schools in South Africa, and this right on our doorstep with no need for your children to suffer a boarding school miles from home.
As far as medical facilities go, provided you have access to a medial aid or can afford private treatment, the local hospitals are of a world standard as are the medical staff.
As far as medical facilities go, provided you have access to a medial aid or can afford private treatment, the local hospitals are of a world standard as are the medical staff.
In conclusion
Finally, sorry about the long blog! Yes, there can be no denying that all is not well in SA. We can "bash SA" quite easily as many do - we can select one headline each day which sends out a negative message instead of the one that is positive. There are other countries that are better run; have better economies; less crime and less corruption. Whether we speak about the entire SA or East London only, as much as life is imperfect, how many cities in the world can claim perfection?
With kind regards and best intentions
Alan H
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