Founding CEO Returns to Restore South African City Agency

A 66-year-old retiree is trading his golden years for street cleaning plans, and a South African city is better for it.

Pierre Voges founded the Mandela Bay Development Agency in 2004 and served as its first CEO until 2016. Now he's back for a five-month stint to steady an organization that's weathered governance challenges and leadership turnover in Nelson Mandela Bay, which includes the city of Gqeberha.

The agency announced his interim appointment this week after former CEO Anele Qaba was dismissed in March 2026 following suspension in December. The leadership gap left the organization adrift, but Voges saw an opportunity to give back to a community he loves.

"I have family in Cape Town and in the UK, but for some reason Gqeberha has always felt like a second home to me," Voges said. He chose this comeback over continued retirement because the organization once gave him so much.

His mission isn't flashy. Voges wants to tackle three fundamentals: security, cleanliness, and maintenance.

When he returned, colleagues warned him not to walk from his office to his Summerstrand flat in the evening anymore. That reality struck him as unacceptable for any city resident.

The Ripple Effect

Voges believes fixing the basics creates a foundation for bigger wins. Clean streets, maintained sidewalks, and safe walking routes might sound simple, but they transform how people experience their city every day.

He compared his role to a rugby lock who piles into a loose maul, setting up the perfect position for a wing to score the flashy try. The next permanent CEO will inherit that solid foundation.

The agency received 88 applications for the position. Voges stood out because of his experience and his vision centered on what makes cities truly livable: safety, accessibility, culture, and openness to diversity.

"This city is very fixable, and it offers a great lifestyle to anyone who lives here," Voges said. He pointed to good facilities, great schools, and enormous potential hiding beneath a "shabby" exterior.

His five-month timeline is short, but his goals are concrete and achievable. Working with city partners, the agency will prioritize the unsexy work that makes neighborhoods function.

At 66, Voges proves that retirement doesn't mean checking out when your community needs steady hands and institutional memory to chart a better path forward.