The newly formed coalition government of the City of Tshwane has expressed confidence it will turn around the metro’s fortunes within the limited period it has before the next local government elections.
Mayor Nasiphi Moya and her executive on Wednesday presented their plans for the next 100 days.
Moya said her team has set as key priority, the stabilisation of the municipality’s finances.
Tshwane is currently running on a funded budget, a situation Moya said was undesirable and should be addressed immediately.
Moya said fund raising initiatives such as Tshwane Ya Tima have been fairly successful but were hindered by among others increasing poverty in the capital.
First, we need to enhance revenue collection, which has not yet returned to pre-COVID levels. This requires improvements in billing measures and increased revenue collection, and intensifying the Tshwane Ya Tima programme. I am proud to report that the City Manager and CFO have made significant progress on this front, with several new measures yielding positive results. The City is on track to achieve a record R4 billion in monthly collections, aiming for R4.4 billion by the end of the financial year. It is critical that we establish a culture of payment,” said Moya.
The new mayor, a representative of Action SA says her team is seeking the best relationship with the opposition ( the DA which governed the metro for 8 years).
Moya said the city’s revenue collection efforts were largely dependent on general economic growth in the capital which she said has been stagnant since the Covid19 pandemic.
Economic revitalisation is essential to financial sustainability and revenue generation. A vibrant economy fuels a functional city, while a functional city enables economic growth. To unlock Tshwane’s economic potential, we will focus on supporting both established corporations, SMMEs, emerging business and informal traders, particularly in township economies. In township business support, our goal is to improve the survival rate of emerging businesses. Over the next 100 days, we will assess the services o7ered by the six operational business support centres in Hammanskraal, Mabopane, Atteridgeville, Bronkorspruit, and Nellmapius. Additionally, we aim to identify potential new business support sites in Region 5 (Refilwe) and Region 1 (Ga-Rankuwa). To build confidence among the broader business community, we will embark on a series of engagements to communicate the new administration’s priorities and explore areas for collaboration,” said Moya.