Durban, South Africa

Durban used to be referred to by locals as the last British outpost prior to 1994 when South Africa officially abandoned the apartheid system of government. The local ANC government wasted millions on renaming street names in an attempt to remove the colonial structure of the British colonizers. Without any recognition for the rich history and potential value of tourism in years to come, the cheap political point scoring of the corrupt ANC lead government squandered not only the future opportunities of the city, it squandered resources that could have been used to uplift poor and struggling communities.

The local Zulu language refers to the city as eThekwini. Taken from the Zulu language, “itheku” which means sheltered waters or what is referred to in English, “lagoon or bay”. South Africa is made up of 7 provinces, Durban is in the province of Kwa Zulu-Natal and is the largest city in this province, with the largest, busiest harbour in South Africa.

The Durban Metropole is also the third most populated city in South Africa after Johannesburg and Cape Town. A major South African tourist destination, Durban offers the visitor a variety of activities from surfing, mountain hikes, game reserves, deep sea diving, beaches, fishing kite surfing, major sporting events like Rigby, Cricket, Swimming, Golf, and many other activities.
With a population in excess of 4 million people the city also has many challenges, with African refugees flocking into the city from Mozambique, Zimbabwe and further afield, the city has many cultures and communities settling into the unique lifestyle. The sub-tropical climate is very conducive to outdoor living with the result the majority of the population is extremely active in sport and outdoor recreation. The beaches and excellent road system makes the city easily accessible to both residents and visitors for many activities, Durban has an extensive “bike friendly” path system which promotes the use of cycles for both recreation and commuting.

Together with Doha, LaPaz, Havana, Beirut and Kuala Lumpur, the city has been recognised as one of the new 7 wonder cities of the world.
The Metro also boasts a very active commercial community with many world leading manufacturing facilities. Toyota manufacturing is based in Durban from which the motor vehicle brand exports to all over the African continent and abroad. Bakers biscuits have a large facility in Pinetown, a town which forms part of the metro. Beacon sweets which distribute its products internationally is in Durban. The Engineering industry also has many high profile companies which not only manufacture unique product for international consumption, these businesses are often leaders in their fields.
Durban is a hive of potential for any company looking to invest in an economy with ample labour and in many ways first-world facilities.
Fluimac diaphragm pumps are well established in this market as a leader in the services to local industry. While the distributor, GM PUMPS CC offers many pump options, the company is a leading distributor of the Fluimac brand of products in South Africa.
Fluimac Air Operated Diaphragm Pumps are assembled and tested for distribution into Southern Africa and the Southern African Island states.