Last week, Council passed the City’s 2018/19 Adjustments Budget financial year.
Its approval is seen as “an historic moment for the City”, as Adjustments Budget has never before been passed in January – it’s happened a month earlier than has been the norm.
Executive Mayor of Joburg, Herman Mashaba said: “This will afford departments and entities an additional opportunity to fully utilise their budgets and deliver on key projects which will drive service delivery.
“During last year’s State of the City Address, I committed the multi-party coalition government to the Diphetogo Program, directly interpreted as to mean real and transformational change. For the City, Diphetogo captures the idea that change is not an event but a process. This is why Diphetogo speaks to defining an end state for Johannesburg and ensuring that long-term planning and investment follows that goal.”
Overall, the Adjustments Budget has seen the City increase allocations to key infrastructure projects and Diphetogo priorities by over R 696 million as compared to the approved 2018/19 Budget.
Some of these key projects include:
· R82 million additional spending for the electrification of informal settlements, bringing the budget to R200 million for 18/19;
· R25 million additional spending is made available for the procurement of mobile clinics by the City, up from R5 million in the approved budget;
· R20 million additional spending for the installation of new public lighting city wide;
· R15 million for the procurement of a mobile sub-station to reduce power outages related to sub-station damage;
· R130 million for the electrification of Fleurhof and South Hills developments – crucial projects for addressing housing needs in the City;
· R50 million additional spending for the upgrading of Council-owned flats and old-age homes;
· R30 million additional spending for transitional housing in the Inner City to give effect to the City’s Inner City Revitalisation Plan;
· R50 million additional spending for the planned replacement of sewer lines to reduce the number of blockages;
· R135 million is additionally allocated for road reconstruction and rehabilitation;
· The budget for traffic calming measures has been doubled to R20 million given the large number of requests received by residents, especially around schools;
· R35 million for upgrades to the City’s EMS, JMPD and Disaster Management Operations Centre in order to improve safety and security in in the City;
· R10 million for much need fire and rescue equipment including equipment used in urban search and rescue;
· R15 million for the expansion of the Olifantsvlei Cemetery to provide more burial space in the City; and
· The budget for the revamping of informal trading stalls within the inner-city is doubled to R20 million.
Mashaba added: “I would like to convey my deepest appreciation to the members of the multi-party coalition who continue to work together to achieve change for the residents of the City of Johannesburg. I would also like to extend my gratitude to the EFF and AIC, who supported this adjustment budget on its merits, and have once again demonstrated their commitment to the people of our City.”
