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40 Days of Prayer for the Economy of Nelson Mandela Bay

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Welcome to our Pray for the Economy page. Here you can find information about how to pray for the economy in general, and specifically for the Economy of Nelson Mandela Bay in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. Every year during the time of Lent on the Christian calendar we have a special prayer focus called "40 Days of Difference". Fore a period of 40 days we focus on praying for various aspects of the economy. You can also use these guidelines to pray for your own local economy during the course of the year. See our blog at www.40daysofdifference.blogspot.com for regular updates on where the local economy is going or not going, and how to pray for it.

Background This prayer initiative started during 2009/2010 with local businessmen in Uitenhage whose businesses were seriously affected by the economic slump. After sharing the vision with other business owners, it was decided on a strategy of 40 days of prayer. The focus of this forthcoming event will be on the economic recovery of the region, poverty and unemployment in the Metropole including Uitenhageand Despatch. The negative economic trend has been continuing since 2009/2010 with prospects for 2012 also looking grim. The 2012 prayer initiative will start on the 22nd of February and will continue for 46 days until Saturday the 7th of April. The six Sundays are not counted so in effect it is a period of 40 days. This timeframe coincides with Lent on the Christian calendar. In Christianity Lent begins on Ash Wednesday and concludes on Holy Saturday. The six Sundays in Lent are not counted among the forty days of lent. This prayer initiative originated against the backdrop of severe job losses, especially in the motor industry. Apart from people being retrenched, major companies like VW and Good Year as well as component suppliers were closing for intermittent periods and some also worked short time. This seriously affected the income of employees whose disposable income decreased, negatively affecting businesses located in the areas where these employees traditionally bought their goods, with a subsequent negative affect on retailers. The current international economic recession does not make things any easier for the future. Small and medium enterprises have also reported a decline in business the last few years. Get the printable version here
This initiative is ongoing but with a special prayer focus every year during the time of Lent on the Christian Calender. Next year Lent will begin on February 13, and end on March 30, 2013. This will also be the dates for our next 40 Days of Prayer for the Economy of Nelson Mandela Bay.
Strategy This is not a prayer chain or a prayer watch and not an effort to formulate a "stand alone" prayer initiative but the focus is merely to add specific requests to existing opportunities where people are already praying and thus creating a greater awareness of the need for prayer for the economic situation. Special initiatives nevertheless are not excluded, and you are encouraged to be creative in your approach. News and prayer guidelines, relevant to the focus of the initiative, will be updated on the website and the blog at www.40daysofdifference.blogspot.com. You are invited to participate in the prayer strategy in one of the following ways: To incorporate the prayer guidelines into existing weekly prayer meetings. To organize additional prayer meetings for this purpose, to pray on site, to prayer walk specific areas where businesses are located, to read and pray through news articles in the business section of the newspaper every day, to pray for business owners in your church, to phone or to visit businesses in your immediate area to encourage them and to pray for them. To fast, either certain days during the 40 days or to participate in a Daniel fast.
Key components of economic growth and recovery. Economies are very complex but for any economy to grow in a specific area there are a few simple conditions. First and foremost, the flow of money into a geographical area must increase, for the economy to grow in that area. If there is no added inflow of money and certain businesses prosper, it is simply at the cost of other business, meaning that some do worse while others do better. The economy is not growing in such a scenario. It is also important to note that once money has flowed into an area, that money needs to stay in circulation in that area for as long as possible. A simple example of this is to encourage consumers to spend their money in a specific area and not to go and spend it elsewhere, if they can buy the same product locally or get the same service locally. Money flows into an area in one of the following ways: Investment from outside the geographical area, allowing money to be channeled into a specific area. Expanding capital expenditure programmes by government. This leads to more employment and subsequently more spending. Easy access to credit, making credit available by private banks to individuals and small and medium enterprises as well as the informal sector. Tourism is a major source of money flowing into a local economy. The increase in Exports is another catalyst for economic growth. Taking the current local and national economic scenario into account, the most promising of these prospects seems to be capital expenditure programmes by government and tourism. Prospects for major developments at Coega, (the major site for investment), are, in light of the international economic crisis, somewhat bleak. Apart from the investment by PETRO SA there are no other major investments on the cards. Exports, especially from the motor industry, have slowed down and the current economic policy by Government and private banks makes the access to credit very complex and difficult. Increase in exports, availability of credit and new investments are only predicted towards the end of 2012. The prayer guidelines for the 40 days of prayer are compiled against this background.

Get the latest Business Barometer for the Eastern Cape. (The "Provincial Business Barometer" is the brainchild of Economists.co.za. Each barometer is an index used to gouge business activity, both per sector and in total, within a particular region on a monthly basis). Eastern Cape Business Barometer August 2001 Eastern Cape Business Barometer December 2011 But there was also good news at The end of 2011, although it is a drop in the bucket. "The Eastern Cape economy experienced a dramatic turnaround after having contracted for the previous seven months, according to the Sake24 and BoE Private Clients Eastern Cape Barometer". Read the full article here from FIN 24.

The Spiritual Roots of Poverty
Poverty has spiritual roots and must be dealt with accordingly, through repentance and prayer. The dynamics of such an initiative will be different from this one. It will most probably deal with tithing, giving, corruption, greed, unrighteousness in the workplace, tax evasion, sin on the land etc. This is nevertheless not the focus of the 40 days of prayer. There were several initiatives over the past years that dealt with these dynamics. This nevertheless is also an ongoing process.

Prayer Focus Areas
To make it easier, the initiative is divided into 7 focus areas that can be used for each of the six weeks during the 40 days. Week 1: Focus: The response of the Church Week 2: Focus: Unemployed and Retrenched Week 3: Focus: National/Provincial/Local Government Efforts Week 4: Focus: Tourism/ Major Sports Events Week 5: Focus: Investment and Exports Week 6: Focus: Small and Medium Enterprise/Informal Sector/BEE Week 7: Focus: God, Our Provider

Week 1: Focus: The Response of the Church 22 February - 28 February It is estimated that there are more than 600 major churches in Nelson Mandela Bay, not counting the hundreds of house and independent churches. This represents a formidable support system in times of difficulty. Pray for the Church to: * Be more sensitive to the needs of their members who are unemployed and retrenched as well those who are having financial difficulties. * Be able to help members to get help with financial planning, debt counselling and finding employment. * Effectively deal with the negative stigma of unemployment, retrenchments and financial difficulties and to create an environment in which members feel free to openly discuss these problems. * Become active in ministries in poorer areas or to support ministries working there already. * Give more guidance to their members in dealing with the poor, beggars and vagrants. * Become more involved in community development projects.

Week 2: Focus: Unemployed and Retrenched 29 February - 6 March Pray for: * Employees who have been retrenched and who are now facing a lack of income. For them to deal with the disappointment and bitterness of losing a job. For men who have lost their role as provider in their homes, for their families to be more understanding and supportive. For those who have been rejected by the community. * The unemployed to find employment. * Those who qualify for unemployment benefits to be helped by the Department of Labor speedily. * Those who have been unemployed for a long time to regain their hope and faith in God.

Week 3: Focus: National/Provincial/Local Government Efforts Capital Expenditure Programs 7 March - 13 March During a recession one of the most popular ways in which Governments all over the world try to stimulate an economy is to embark on capital expenditure programmes. This is also a strategy implemented by the SA Government. Provincial and Local governments are tasked to implement these programmes. Pray For: * National, Provincial and Local Government to effectively identify needs for these programmes, to effectively formulate the programmes and the implementation thereof. Areas that have already been identified are infrastructure development and the building and maintenance of hospitals and schools. * Allocation of tenders, to be transparent and fair and in line with tender procedures. That corruption in tender procedures will be prevented and exposed. * Political agendas not to hamper the implementation of these programmes,that the needs of people will be met and that money will not be wasted on unnecessary programmes.


Week 4: Focus: Tourism 14 March - 20 March Pray For: * A successful integrated tourism development strategy involving all relevant Government Departments, The Tourism Board and the Private Sector. (See the Eastern Cape Tourism Master Plan here) * Service levels in the tourism sector to be on par with international standards. * The unlocking of the tourism potential in Nelson Mandela Bay and the Eastern Cape. * The informal sector to be successfully integrated in tourism ventures.

Week 5: Focus: Investment and Exports 21 March - 27 March The major role-players in presenting the Metro as an investment opportunity to the rest of the world are Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality (NMBM), the Coega Development Corporation (CDC), Mandela Bay Development Agency (MBDA) and the Nelson Mandela Bay Business Chamber. Pray for: * The Metro to become a major investment destination for national and international companies and corporations. * The efforts of the NMBM, the CDC and Chamber of Commerce to attract investment, to be successful. The successful implementation of the Metropolitan Spatial Development Framework of the NMBM that sets out the prospect of future industrial development across the Metro. * The UDDI's (Uitenhage and Despatch Development Initiative's) successful implementation of planned developments. * Political agendas, corruption and unrighteousness not to influence decision making processes. * Continuation and expansion of export contracts for motor manufacturers and related industries.
New Vehicle Sales Statistics (Exports) - December 2010/2011 Comparison Get the monthly NAAMSA sales figures here

Week 6: . Focus: Small and Medium Enterprise/Informal Sector/BEE 29 March - 3 April It is estimated that the informal sector will, in future, become one of the most important sectors providing employment for people. This is nevertheless one of the most neglected sectors in the economy in terms of training opportunities, the availability of credit and access to bigger markets. The informal sector in townships are run almost entirely by foreigners these days. Small and Medium enterprises are also severely affected by the economic downturn with many businesses reporting a decline in business during 2011. The Nelson Mandela Metropole Business Confidence Indicator compiled by RGT Smart, the major indicator of confidence in the local economy, has shown a continuous drop in month to month value since its highest point in April 2007, until June 2009 when it bottomed out. Since then it steadily climbed back to previous heights. Recently the index levelled out again. Not much of a vote of confidence for 2012. Nelson Mandela Bay Business Confidence Indicator (Sept 2011) Pray for: * The development of the informal sector, for them to obtain access to credit, training opportunities and access to bigger markets. * Struggling businesses all over the Bay to find creative ways of doing business. Especially for Christian Business owners and managers who are confronted on a daily basis by unethical, unrighteous, corrupt and unlawful business practices. For them not to compromise. * Christian business owners, managers and even employees who deal with business owners, managers and employees of other faiths. For them to have wisdom and insight in working with or dealing with people of other faiths. * The Nelson Mandela Bay Business Chamber to be able to continue their invaluable service to large and smaller business concerns. * The successful implementation of the Black Economic Empowerment strategy by businesses, for wisdom for business owners on how to deal with the demands of labor practice and labor law and to turn this into a win-win situation for both employers and employees.
Learn more about the Unashamedly Ethical Campaign here


Cast all your anxiety on Him because he cares for you. (1 Pet 5:7)

Prayer Requests will be updated on this page.
Also see the blog at www.40daysofdifference.blogspot.com for updates, or view it in the finder below.

Pierre and Sugnet van Wyk . PO Box 1305 . Uitenhage . South Africa, 6230
Phone: 041-9228308 . Fax: 041-9922956 . Email: outreach@global.co.za