Press releases

Water tankers dispatched to parts of Kempton Park

Robert.Brand@ekurhuleni.gov.za (Media Unit) — Wed, 23 May 2012 13:30:18 +0000

The Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality has dispatched water tankers to residents of Birch Acres,

Lens man peter magubane tells youngsters to stay focused

Robert.Brand@ekurhuleni.gov.za (Media Unit) — Tue, 15 May 2012 16:49:00 +0000

“Never put your camera down.” This is the advice that legendary Drum photographer Dr Peter Magubane gave to young shutterbugs

Programme Boloka Metsi

Robert.Brand@ekurhuleni.gov.za (Robert Brand) — Fri, 11 May 2012 12:43:33 +0000

Rolling out water consumption management meters

Zuurfontein cemetery running out of burial space

Robert.Brand@ekurhuleni.gov.za (Media Unit) — Thu, 10 May 2012 14:25:10 +0000

The Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality wishes to alert residents that the Zuurfontein Cemetery in Kempton Park is expected to reach its capacity by August 2012.

The cleanest water in the country!

Robert.Brand@ekurhuleni.gov.za (Robert Brand) — Thu, 10 May 2012 13:46:33 +0000

The Blue Drop report, released on Monday, 7 May, by Water Affairs Minister Edna Molewa,

Swift reaction by Ekurhuleni quells Barcelona protest

Robert.Brand@ekurhuleni.gov.za (Media Unit) — Thu, 10 May 2012 11:44:03 +0000

Swift reaction by the leadership of the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality has ended a service delivery protest by the residents of Barcelona informal settlement in KwaThema.
Immediately after news of the protest broke out in the early hours of this morning, the office of the executive mayor dispatched a team of politicians and senior officials to Barcelona to try and resolve the protest.
“When we engaged with community members it became clear that the protest was linked to the work of a contractor who is busy installing toilets and water infrastructure in the area. Due to the challenges that the contractor has been experiencing, the project had slowed down giving residents an impression that the project is no longer going ahead,” explains Zweli Dlamini mayoral spokesperson, adding that things came to a head this morning when residents saw people removing the satellite office of the contractor – thus in a way confirming their worst fears.
“However, the crowd was well satisfied when council explained to them that the work will go ahead in the near future. We have in fact given ourselves two weeks within which to ensure that the project resumes,” he explains.
Dlamini further explains that on engaging with the community, the Chief Whip of Council Robert Mashego heard various other public concerns which may threaten future stability in the area and as a result decided to call an urgent stakeholder meeting tomorrow which will involve the ward councillor, civic structures, political organisations in the area and other relevant role-players – which will look at ensuring the smooth development of Barcelona and the entire Ward 77.
While the crowd did disperse peacefully, the SAPS and Ekurhuleni Metro Police continue to maintain high visibility until the situation normalises.
For more information Zweli Dlamini can be contacted at 082 573 6464
END

Issued by

Justice Mohale
Acting Media Relations Unit Manager
EMM Spokesperson
083 417 6999/011 999 0066

Questions from the floor – Social Development and Cohesion

Robert.Brand@ekurhuleni.gov.za (Media Unit) — Fri, 04 May 2012 10:39:09 +0000

Businessman Sizwe Mazibuko said poverty is a huge challenge and cannot be viewed in isolation of education.

Ekurhuleni focused on creating a better future

Robert.Brand@ekurhuleni.gov.za (Robert Brand) — Fri, 04 May 2012 10:28:57 +0000

Talking about the future strategy for Ekurhuleni, Work stream facilitator for Social Development and Cohesion, Hlula Msimang asked public participants to consider where they find themselves now and to think about where they would like to be in the future. And then to devise a means of crossing the divide to reach their goals.
The current performance issues that the metro faces include:
Population growth and urbanisation;
Public health services that are overstretched;
A public education system that is underperforming;
Social fracturing and inequality;
Poverty and unemployment are rife;
Housing;
Social infrastructure and amenity backlog;
Safety and security.
Msimang’s presentation focused on creating a future Ekurhuleni taking into consideration population growth and migration. Migration he said presented the metro with an enormous challenge especially in terms of available space and land.
“There is not enough land available in Ekurhuleni, and with a growing population the demand is going to increase further. With the population growth comes the shrinking of space, which is why the metro has to examine the possibility of high-density housing and appropriate service delivery.
“Our health infrastructure is catering to people who come from outside Ekurhuleni’s boundaries to access our health services, which is why our services are becoming stretched.”
Ekurhuleni is already an urban environment and unfortunately as the influx increases, informal settlements will continue to grow. Already the metro cannot meet the backlog and demand for RDP housing.
Msimang highlighted the education crisis and said it is critical to ensure that every child that goes through the schooling system can read, write and do arithmetic, so that they can grow up and learn skills to create an income stream.
“People must acquire skills in order to get jobs, it is the only way out of poverty. Education is the best escape out of poverty. We live in a changing and advancing world, jobs demand a certain level of skills that people must have in order to quality for employment.”
Long-term risks and opportunities

His presentation also centred on the following:
There is a large youth population ? young people under the age of 35 make up 60 percent of Ekurhuleni’s population.
Climate change is conducive to change in our communities.
Available resources (financial and other) in the private sector and other spheres of government.
Advances in ICT offer an opportunity for modernised delivery of services for a smart city.
Existing infrastructure for further developments.
There metro’s main concern is reduction of poverty, but it is important to address the core problems. But how does one break the cycle of poverty?
Which brings one to the point of low-cost housing. Housing is an emotive issue, but it can be used to build integrated and sustainable communities, where sport and culture play a major part, Msimang said.
Safe and secure cities are high on the agenda, but policing is not the only answer to reducing crime in a community. Community involvement and neighbourhood watches can play a big role to ensure residents’ safety. Looking out for our neighbours is one way of contributing towards a safer community.
More importantly, we have to grapple with the root causes of crime, such as alcohol abuse and drug addiction. We also have to undergo a mindshift to make to changes that we want to see in a future Ekurhuleni. People resist change, but that is the only way things will improve in our city.
The tax base of the city is very thin, we don’t have the resources or the capacity. Also, the global recession has impacted on us, with factories being forced to close down resulting in big job losses.
The infrastructure in our city needs to be developed as part of our 2055 goals and technology has to play a pivotal role in the achievement of our dreams for the world-class city of Ekurhuleni.

Follow the GDS process

Additional GDS Information

GDS Social cohesion stream sets the scene for consultation process

Robert.Brand@ekurhuleni.gov.za (Media Unit) — Fri, 04 May 2012 06:20:19 +0000

The Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality’s Growth and Development Strategy (GDS) 2055 stakeholder engagement sessions set off to a positive start yesterday in Germiston as residents aired their views on how to create a better Ekurhuleni for their children.

Public urged to participate in the GDS 2055

Robert.Brand@ekurhuleni.gov.za (Media Unit) — Thu, 03 May 2012 08:58:59 +0000

Ekurhuleni metro has launched a series of public participation sessions in preparation of devising its Growth and Development Strategy for 2055.