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The Citizen
07-05-2025
- Business
- The Citizen
State of the City: Johannesburg mayor pledges better services, power for informal areas
State of the City: Johannesburg mayor pledges better services, power for informal areas Johannesburg Mayor Sello Dada Morero has pledged to improve basic services, formalise informal settlements, and boost infrastructure in his 2025 State of the City Address (SOCA). Must read: Is the City of Gold losing its shine and which entity is its weakest link? Speaking at the City Council in Braamfontein on Wednesday, Morero outlined a multi-pronged plan to tackle issues such as electricity access, waste management, potholes, and water security, aimed at uplifting communities and driving sustainable development across the city. On Wednesday (May 7) at the City Council in Braamfontein, he promised residents that he would gradually take the city to greater heights. Read more: City Power's turnaround time to fix streetlights explained Morero will work with various entities, including Joburg Water (JW), City Power, Pikitup and Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA). He said electricifying and formalising informal settlements across the city is one of the priorities. 'The electrification of informal settlements remains a top priority, with a R296 million allocation focused on connecting to the grid areas such as Diepsloot, Orange Farm, Ivory Park, and Kya Sands. This initiative will provide safe and legal electricity access to thousands of households, integrating them into the urban energy system and laying the groundwork for service upgrades and formalisation,' said Morero. He said this initiative will be led by the City Power. Morero added that this programme also supports the City's energy transition, through complementary investments in substation upgrades and energy efficiency retrofits. Following a scourge of illegal dumping and littering, he said they will upgrade and rehabilitate landfill sites, install recovery facilities and biogas plants and procure a new collection fleet for Pikitup. Read more: Pikitup frantically erect temporary depot to appease workers to return to work He said City will join forces with township traders to buy in bulk in a bid to boost profits and create jobs. He declared war on potholes, illegal connections, dumping, land invasions and undocumented immigrants. 'Building resilience and reliability in water security through JW, which commands the largest average capital allocation. This programme is delivering a series of large-scale interventions aimed at securing Johannesburg's water future. Implementing JRA Multi-Year Infrastructure Programme. JRA is tasked with preserving and upgrading the backbone of the City's mobility network,' added Morero. Read more: Halfway House Development Forum plans to meet with heads of JW, JRA, JMPD, and City Power to improve suburb He said this includes tarring of gravel roads in township areas and the rehabilitation of stormwater infrastructure. Morero concluded that these interventions will reduce flooding, enhance connectivity, and ensure that residents in underserved areas are better integrated into the City's transport grid. Follow us on our Whatsapp channel, Facebook, X, Instagram, and TikTok for the latest updates and inspiration! Have a story idea? We'd love to hear from you – join our WhatsApp group and share your thoughts! At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
The Citizen
07-05-2025
- Business
- The Citizen
Morero's vision to make Johannesburg a world-class African city
Morero paid tribute to Johannesburg's former mayors, saying he will continue where they left off. With just a few months left as mayor of Johannesburg, Dada Morero said he has plans to make the city of gold the best on the continent. Morero delivered his maiden state of the city address (SOCA) on Wednesday at the Connie Bapela council chambers in Braamfontein. Before outlining his priorities, Morero admitted that the city is in a poor state and much has to be done to correct this. 'Our challenges are complex, and we do not have infinite resources alone we will nor solve these challenges. For instance, the city is not financially stable, infrastructure is decaying and service delivery backlogs have reversed the gains we have made. 'Covid-19 alone has set us back by 10 years. As we stand here before you, the uppermost in our minds and driving our actions is to go back to the starting gates of our founding mayors.' Power generation Morero said one of the ways of improving service delivery is to move away from relying solely on Eskom for generating electricity. He said the city should implement its energy sustainability strategy, which aims to ensure the delivery of conventional power and integrate new energy storage facilities. 'The big idea is to reduce our reliance generation capacity from Eskom. This new energy mix is designed to release the pressure on Eskom,' he said. Townships Morero said another priority was giving the City's townships a facelift through infrastructure investment. He said he wants to transform these settlements into liveable, connected, and economically viable communities. Inner city rejuvenation He said he also had plans to ensure that the inner City of Johannesburg becomes the economic epicentre of the entire province. Many big corporations have moved their businesses out of the inner city because of high levels of crime. 'This cross-cutting initiative is aimed at upgrading bulk infrastructure, refurbish abandoned buildings, installing safe public lighting and restore dignity to the heart of the city. 'The city is being repositioned as the economic epicentre of the Gauteng City region. We are reclaiming the inner city. The reclaim of the inner city has become personal,' he said. Electrifying informal settlements Morero said the city had invested a substantial amount of money through City Power in electrifying informal settlements. 'The electrification of informal settlements remains a top priority with a R296 million allocation focused on connecting to the grid areas such as Diepsloot. Orange Farm, Ivory-Park and Kya Sands,' he said. Water challenges The city has been having water challenges, which sometimes lead to many residents struggling to get a drop of water from their taps. However, Morero said the city has invested enough capital in ensuring that the city is water secure. 'Building resilience and reliability of water security through Joburg water, which commands the largest average capital allocation, this programme is delivering a series of large-scale interventions aimed at securing Joburg's water future,' he said. Roads and Transport He said the city is tackling frustrating problems such as potholes and dysfunctional robots. He also committed that phase one of the repair of Bree Street (Lillian Ngoyi) will be completed by August this year. Morero said the city is committed to fighting crime through technology. Crime and disaster management He said the Integrated Intelligence Operating Centre (IIOC) will receive investment to boost the city's crime fighting and disaster management abilities. 'The upgraded IIOC supports smart surveillance data analytics and multi-agency coordination in responding to public safety threats,' he said. ALSO READ: DA lays criminal charges against City of Johannesburg top officials Tariffs Morero said the city is aware of the high electricity tariffs that customers are paying, especially industrial customers. 'These customers are major employers in our city, and we need to support them so they can be sustainable and financially viable. 'Through City Power, we will provide a relief tariff option to our industrial customers.' G20 summit He said the city will ensure that it is ready to host heads of state and other dignitaries who will arrive later this year for the G20 summit. 'Rest assured, once again, we will work hard to unite as the residents of Johannesburg and work together to make our guests feel at home,' he said. Vision for Johannesburg Morero understood the city's challenges, but is committed to keeping the vision of making Johannesburg a city of winners. 'The long-term vision is to be indeed a world African city. For today, we need a vision that symbolises a Johannesburg we want to see. Let us adopt a vision that is centred on creating a winning city,' he said. He encouraged residents to pay their rates and manage their accounts to ensure that the city collects enough revenue. 'The city's financial position remains fragile, and it calls for a major reset in our financial management and revenue generation activities,' he said. NOW READ: State of the City Address: Johannesburg's Challenges
