Durban — SanDock Austral Shipyards CEO Prasheen Maharaj has been named the new president of the Durban Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) NPC.
Maharaj succeeds Nigel Ward, executive vice-president of Toyota SA, who served in the position for the past three years.
Maharaj and the new DCCI board and council were inaugurated at the chamber’s 166th annual gala dinner, held at Moses Mabhida Stadium on Tuesday night. The prestigious business networking event has been a fixture on the Durban social calendar since its inception in 1856.
On Tuesday, a number of KwaZulu-Natal business communities came out in numbers to celebrate the DCCI’s milestone achievement.
Speaking at the dinner, Maharaj said during his tenure as president, his goals would include focusing on driving up membership, revenue generation and protecting the brand’s legacy.
“The US Chamber of Business has three million members, 90% of which employ fewer than 100 people, and 70% of whom employ fewer than 10 people,” he said.
Maharaj said an entrepreneurial revolution was needed to address the triple challenges of poverty, inequality and unemployment in the country.
Maharaj said the DCCI will create new business opportunities for its members, and build a conducive and resilient business environment.
“We have to reduce the trust deficit between the public and private sectors, and one way for this to improve is to reduce the ‘do-say’ ratio, so there is timeous delivery on the promises you make,” he said.
Maharaj said entrepreneurship was the key to creating jobs and economic growth in the country. He said he believed being good and doing good for business amounted to becoming an invaluable partner in helping achieve more for the country.
“If just some of us embark on this journey together, we will create a snowball effect,” Maharaj said.
Outgoing president Ward said he looked forward to continuing to serve the DCCI alongside Maharaj. Ward said looking at the impacts of Covid-19, the unrest and floods, they were on the road to rebuilding what had been tarnished over the past three years.
“We still have confidence in consistently serving the business community. These factors are critical if we want to bring about change for the generations to come. I will continue to balance the cause for the business community in the city, KZN and across the country,” said Ward.
He added that with the public and private sectors working together, more could be achieved in building a strong economy and a better country.
“I want to be a conjurer that follows the way to promote public and private partnerships. I firmly believe these will determine the success of our city, province and our country. As I look back over my three-year journey and reflect, I am left with nothing but good memories,” said Ward.
Announcing the new board and council, the chamber’s CEO, Palesa Phili, said she was confident Maharaj would commit himself to his new role, ensuring that the business community of the city and province remained resilient.
Daily News