Financial Services

Cllr Dave Swart was born in Cape Town and spent most of his school years living in Vredehoek, Cape Town. He matriculated from Sea Point Boy’s High in 1976 and underwent mandatory National Service in the South African Air Force and later joined the permanent force as a Telecom Operator.

In 1982 Dave entered the world of commerce when he joined Cadburys (Pty) Ltd as a sales merchandiser, eventually becoming a key account manager. He went on to work for other Fast-moving consumer goods companies. He joined flavour company Bush Boake Allen and eventually International Flavours and Fragrances. In 2003 Dave ventured into the word of self-employment as a distributor for Quest International Flavours. After a couple of years, he decided that the bustle of Gauteng was no longer stimulating and changed direction completely and bought a backpackers in Plettenberg Bay, moving there in July 2010.

From 2013 to 2015 he was the chairperson of the Plett Accommodation Association. This voluntary association of members, corresponds with the National Accommodation Association of South Africa with particular reference to its aims and objectives. It represents its members to enhance and promote the travel and tourism industry of Plett.

Soon after, Dave was approached by the Democratic Alliance (DA) to stand as their candidate in Bitou’s Ward 2 in a by-election in April 2017. Considering this a ‘next step’ in his current involvement in the Tourism Industry, he accepted the nomination and won the ward. During this time his focus was on growing the Tourism Sector, one of the main income streams for the Bitou area. He also focused on continuous oversight of service delivery and housing in the area. Since then he has also been actively involved in community activities concerning safety and security of the residents and visitors to the area.

After the November 2021 Local Government election, Dave was elected as the executive mayor of Bitou Municipality. He served as the Executive Mayor in a 3-party coalition until February 2024 when one of the coalition partners, Plett Democratic Congress, left tho coalition to form a coalition with the African National Congress, Patriotic Alliance and Ikhwezi Political Movement.

Cllr Swart is still the Ward 2 councillor at Bitou Municipality. On 4 July 2024 he was nominated as Bitou Municipality representative at the GRDM. Subsequently, he was inaugurated at the GRDM as a Councillor on 5 July 2024 and elected as a Mayoral Committee Chairperson under the leadership of GRDM Executive Mayor, Ald. Andrew Stroebel.