Gauteng a hive of activity

Gauteng is winning the war against violent service delivery protests that had engulfed parts of the province over the years. During his State of the Province Address (Sopa) last Monday, Premier David Makhura said they had declined from 21% to 15% in the past 12 months.

He attributed this to the work of Ntirhisano, a programme used by government to respond to the needs of the people. Makhura said the programme outcomes in addressing grievances of protesting communities before they spiralled into violence ought to be heeded. “The problem was not only about service delivery, but also about the way development and delivery were being undertaken,” said Makhura.

“People of Gauteng, this is testimony that we listen and act on your concerns so that we can grow together. “We are encouraged by these developments, but we will not be complacent. “Ntirhisano is about working with communities in solving problems and making government officials and service providers accountable.”

The premier said Team Gauteng – made up of himself, MECs and mayors – would solve problems, unblock delivery of infrastructure projects and get government’s economy to work for citizens. “It is possible to restore public confidence if we, as government, honour our commitments and implement agreed plans.”

Makhura said his administration was implementing an integrity management framework to deter corruption.

Supporting the local automotive industries

Premier David Makhura gave an update on some of the important developments regarding flagship projects in the five development corridors in the province. In the Northern Corridor, which accounts for 40% of SA’s national vehicle production, BMW has invested R6 billion to expand its work on the BMW X series at its factory in Rosslyn.

There has also been an increase in the levels of production at the Nissan plant in Rosslyn, north of Pretoria. Iveco will also produce trucks and buses in the same area, Makhura said. “We are undertaking a feasibility study to build the ‘Automotive City’ as a post-apartheid city in Tshwane.

“The Automotive City will further strengthen the Northern Corridor as an investment destination of choice for the automotive sector, especially for further export into the SADC region.” The premier also referred to the construction of the Business Process Outsourcing Park in Hammanskraal that will start in the coming weeks.

In Johannesburg, the Corridors of Freedom project is going well. In terms of this project infrastructure upgrades along the Empire/Perth Corridor, as well as along Louis Botha Avenue, are already underway.

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Read full speech below:

State of the Province Address 2016