“A night under the African Stars”
On Tuesday, 20 September 2022, the Durban Chamber of Commerce and Industry NPC will be hosting their 166th Annual Gala Dinner at Moses Mabhida Stadium, Durban KwaZulu-Natal. The Annual Gala Dinner has been a fixture on the Durban business calendar since its inception in 1856.
This year, the Durban Chamber has partnered with MTN, one of Africa’s largest mobile network operators who are our platinum sponsor and also a long-time Durban Chamber member. This is a strategic partnership with MTN as the Durban Chamber’s Annual Gala Dinner Theme “A night under the African Stars” aligns with their purpose which is inspiring Africa’s potential where they are committed to bridging the digital divide, furthering financial inclusion, and advancing the attainment of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals through their core business activities and our support to governments, communities, and customers.
The Durban Chamber Annual Gala Dinner has been a fixture on the Durban business calendar since its inception in 1856. This prestigious business networking and social event is attended by captains of industry, local entrepreneurs, corporate partners as well as provincial government leaders, we have had the honour of hosting between 800 – 1000 guests annually for 165 years.
This year’s Annual Gala dinner is distinct as the Durban Chamber will be announcing its new Board and Council leadership as well as inaugurating the new Durban Chamber President.
Our commitment as the Durban Chamber is to facilitate dialogs that will assist our stakeholders and the business community at large to uplift our economy and direct investment to Durban and KZN, as a result we have encouraged leaders in the private and public sector to address our guests as they will outline their perspective on action plans, their economic infrastructure plans and how/ where there can be a collaboration between these sectors for the betterment of our city of Durban and KZN.
We are honoured to also have additional sponsors participating in our annual gala dinner which are FNB, Unilever, GagasiFM, SABS, KZN Philharmonic Orchestra, Toyota, and The Mercury.
Comment from FNB:
“We remain invested in our beautiful province and committed to unlocking its potential. This includes supporting economic growth and a better socio-economic environment. The Durban Chamber is an important vehicle to help uplift eThekwini, underpinned by credible partnerships. We consider ourselves partners and look forward to continuously helping.” – Asheen Magjee, FNB Provincial Head, KZN.
Message of support from GagasiFM:
We are looking forward to gathering as businesses under one sky at the Durban Chamber’s Annual Gala Dinner, and we’d like to thank the Durban Chamber, for the support and guidance that they have given to businesses and communities through the past tumultuous years. The chamber played such a significant role in bringing together different entities with the objective of protecting and rebuilding KZN.
An event like the Durban Chamber’s annual gala dinner is important because it emphasises the need for businesses to create partnerships or relationships to grow KZN’s economy. It also creates an opportunity for business role players to network, share learnings, and encourage each other- which is a great idea considering the challenges that businesses have faced in the past couple of years. As GagasiFM, this is the reason why we could not miss out on being part of this event, for us, it is important to celebrate businesses that not only have been resilient but have also gone beyond the call of duty; protecting our communities and providing aid when help is needed” – Minenhle Dlamini, Managing Director, GagasiFM.
Comment from MTN:
“We are fully aligned with the Durban Chamber of Commerce and Industries vision and mission to improve and grow the local business economy of eThekwini of which we MTN play an integral part as both a key enabler and contributor to the economy of eThekwini and province as a whole. In line with this vision shared by DCCI to quote MTN CEO Mr Charles Molapisi on the day MTN was awarded the 5G Spectrum licenses where in it stated “We want to have 5G connectivity across almost every part of RSA, our aim is to bring the benefits of the fourth industrial revolution to more people in an efficient and cost-effective way. This means expanding our 5G coverage every day, with a strong focus on investment into main metros, peri-urban areas and larger townships initially”. This investment in key technology shall drive the much-needed growth to achieve the vision of growth of the economy of eThekwini. We continue to look forward to a fruitful and prosperous relationship that will yield many benefits for the growth ambitions of the economy of eThekwini and KwaZulu Natal at large”. – Matthew Khumalo.
Comment from Unilever:
“Unilever SA’s support for the Durban Chamber Gala Dinner demonstrates our continued commitment to the economy of KZN and its recovery and growth from the devastation to infrastructure and businesses and unfortunate loss of life caused by the civil unrest of July 2021, and by the worst floods in six decades experienced early this year. Our company is one of the largest employers in KZN and has also established deep connections and roots in the community through our brands such as Lifebuoy, Shield and Robertson just to name a few as well as our social investment initiatives as our purpose is to serve South Africans by making sustainable living a common place” – Justin Apsey, Executive Vice President, Southern Africa.
The Durban Chamber wants to encourage the Business Community and all tiers of our Government and the private sector the need to work together with all our communities in building a shared future. Only when we are “In Business for a Better World” we will rid our society of inequality, poverty, and unemployment.
