Metros must invest wisely in infrastructure – Gordhan

28 August 2015

 

The ability of municipalities to invest wisely in urban infrastructure would be a major contributory factor to South Africa’s economic future, Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Pravin Gordhan said on Thursday August 27.

 

The Minister was speaking on the opening day of the Urban Investment Partnership Conference at Gallagher Estate in Midrand. The two-day conference was organised by the National Treasury and the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs and attended by senior officials of the country’s eight major municipalities – the City of Johannesburg, City of Tshwane, Buffalo City, City of Cape Town, Mangaung Metro, City of Ekurhuleni, eThekwini and Nelson Mandela Bay.

 

Minister Gordhan emphasised the need for adequate and effective investment in the metros, saying South Africa needed successful cities to grow. He urged municipalities to desist from continuing to put poor people on the periphery of cities, far from jobs and other opportunities. He insisted that there must a physical integration of townships into the mainstream of urban economic and social life. This, he said, was a recommendation contained in the National Development Plan, which called for “a break from the past of our divided and inefficient cities” by building more compact and inclusive cities.

 

Speakers at the conference included Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene, Dr Oliver Weigel of the German Federal Ministry for Environment, Erky Wood of the South African Property Owners Association, Sinazo Sibisa of the Development Bank of Southern Africa, eThekwini City Manager Sibusiso Sithole and the Association for Savings and Investment South Africa's Andre Smit.

The conference ends on Friday August 28.

 

Among the expected outcomes is the formalisation of regular engagements among cities, the government, investors and development financing institutions.

 

The conference is also expected to come up with measures to overcome regulatory and other bottlenecks.