ANC Gauteng response to Demarcation Board Decision on the West Rand

Johannesburg, Thursday 6 July 2015

The ANC Gauteng Province welcomes the ongoing discussions to create a viable and sustainable West Rand Metro council.

We take note of the decision of the Municipal Demarcation Board to merge Westonaria and Randfontein. Although this was not in our original submission, we believe that if both national and provincial governments properly support this merger, it can serve as a stepping-stone toward the creation of a single metro for the West Rand. However, we are still deeply concerned about the financial viability of the new municipality that will be born out of this merger.

Our decade-old vision has been to have municipal demarcations premised on a seamlessly integrated, socially cohesive, economically inclusive and globally competitive City Region. This integrated governance model is based on a metropolitan system of local government. Megacities will thus have vibrant local economies and dynamic institutional capabilities to drive transformation, modernisation and re-industrialisation in all the five of Gauteng’s development corridors.

The West Rand district working with the Gauteng provincial government will lay a firm foundation to establish a Metro by 2021. This will only happen when the district and its local council are financially viable to improve connectivity of transport services and other infrastructure.

We believe that the same approach of a metro should apply in the Southern Corridor, and that the Sedibeng metro development must be anchored on a sound and vibrant economic base and strong institutional capabilities.

Statement issued by ANC Gauteng Head of Communication Nkenke Kekana August 6 2015