|
Council members from Mpumalanga and Free State spent the day
with their counterparts in Johannesburg, learning from each other.
OUT of town visitors - from Mpumalanga and Free State - were
bowled over by the transformation of Johannesburg's inner city.
Greeting visitors: Joburg's executive mayor Amos Masondo welcomes Nkangala's executive mayor, SK Mashilo (Photo: Enoch Lehung, City of Johannesburg)
Delegations from Nkangala and Mangaung were taken on a tour
of the CBD by the Johannesburg information and knowledge exchange (Jike) unit
in the City of Johannesburg on 2 February. They were in town to share
information on a range of issues, including urban renewal.
The group, members of their respective mayoral committees
and municipal officials, escorted by members of the Johannesburg metro police department,
stopped off at several of the City's flagship developments: from the Rea Vaya
infrastructure to the creation of the extreme parks, from the development on
the historic Constitutional Hill to the housing developments in Pennyville,
and, of course, the football stadiums revamped for the 2010 FIFA World Cup™.
The information-sharing day started with the two mayors from
Nkangala, the district municipality that covers region from Delmas to Waterval Boven and Dullstroom in Mpumalanga and Mangaung, the Bloemfontein metro in Free State, joining Johannesburg
Executive Mayor Amos Masondo in outlining their expectations.
"We are meeting because we are facing similar challenges
that affect us all in one way or another: roads, issues of safety, HIV/Aids,
urban renewal, and so on. We are here to answer the call and meet the demands
to a greater or lesser extent," said Masondo. "The ideas that we raise here
today may trigger other ideas that may assist us in moving forward. South
Africa can only be a better place if we are hungry for more - hungry for more
ideas."
History
Joburg's City manager, Mavela Dlamini, started off the morning session and gave
an overview and brief history of the City, its executive and administrative
structures, its strategic direction and service delivery model.
Presentations were made by
various members of the mayoral committee including: Masondo; the member of the mayoral committee for
development planning and urban management, Ros Greeff, supported by the director of urban
management co-ordination and special projects, Greg Daniels; the mayoral
committee member for community development, Bafana Sithole, supported by the
executive director of the 2010 unit, Sibongile Mazibuko; the Speaker of
council, Nkele Ntingane, supported by the secretary of council, Tshepiso Nage;
and the chair of the oversight committees, Prema Naidoo.
Joburg's City manager Mavela Dlamini gives an overview of the City's service delivery model (Photo: Enoch Lehung, City of Johannesburg)
This session was held in conjunction with Jike, a dynamic
unit within the City which set up to drive knowledge management and innovation
to new heights. Jike strives to embed the value of its programmes and services
rendered in order to ensure that it achieves its mission, which is to establish
and sustain knowledge-intensive services that support the City's vision to be a
learning, knowledge-driven organisation.
"The purpose of our visit is to learn from this municipality
[Johannesburg]. This is the most cost-effective route to exchange information,"
said Mangaung's executive mayor, France Morule.
Nkangala's executive mayor, SK Mashilo, came looking for
ways to turn the district into a metro. "We thought it was important for us to
come through to Joburg and learn as much as we can, as [it] has dealt with
various problems that we are facing now."
World Cup
With the World Cup beginning in June, great emphasis was placed on all the
developments taking place in Johannesburg. Mazibuko took the helm and had everyone listening
intently to what was happening on the ground.
"We at the City of Joburg believe we are ready, and we are
moving in line with the deadline that we set out. The executive mayor's
approach to the World Cup has been very clear. He gave a mandate to say that they
used a platter that comes with the whole thing of the [competition] to
accelerate our own IDP [Integrated Development Plan] programme and our own
developmental goals," she said.
"We also set ourselves to excite all fans that come to
Johannesburg so that this is not just a once-off visit; so that people would
come and invest in our country."
Mazibuko also elaborated on the mayoral legacy projects.
These are the distinct projects that were selected by the mayor and the council
to use the World Cup to step up the development of the city, and so leave a
lasting legacy after the tournament.
"These are not football issues, they are community issues,"
she explained. There are seven legacy projects; one of them is the development
of a community-based theatre in Jabulani, in Soweto. "Another is the greening
of soccer fields in our communities - we are grassing them, putting in ablution
systems and changing rooms."
The upgrading of the Diepkloof hostels is another legacy
project. "People stay in these as part of their search for work and part of
urbanisation. They move from the rural areas to come and stay in Joburg," she
said.
"We are upgrading their living conditions in terms of
electricity and water. This project is part of the province's long-term plans."
Tour
And then it was on to the tour. First was a drive through Constitutional Hill, followed
by a stop at Rea Vaya's Westgate Station, and then a drive through Pennyville
housing development.
This was followed by a drive to Soccer City, and then
another stop at Orlando Stadium, where they had a guided tour. Delegates were also
taken for a walkabout at the Orlando West Park, and were "blown away" by the
extreme park in Diepkloof.
At the end of the day, the group met for a debriefing
session at Liliesleaf Farm in Rivonia. They gathered together to watch a short
film of the Rivonia Trial to show the significance of the Farm. Later, votes of
thanks were exchanged followed by a guided tour of the farm.
Morule expressed great appreciation about the opportunity to
gain knowledge from the mayoral committee of Johannesburg. "We are very grateful
to Amos Masondo and his staff for today. It proves that we don't have to go
beyond our borders to learn. It was empowering."
Related stories:
|
