City wants to increase spending on human settlements, employment support, community safety
The City's Mayoral Committee today recommended that Council approve the Adjustments Budget for the current financial year (2014/15). As a City which is dedicated to redress through enabling opportunities for our more vulnerable residents, highlights of the budget include the appropriation of more than R450 million for the acquisition of land for human settlements and R21 million for job creation in solid waste management alone. Read more below:
The City of Cape Town's Adjustments Budget again demonstrates its commitment to service delivery, sound financial management and the balanced approach that is required from government to ensure a sustainable city.
As such, the City's Mayoral Committee has recommended that Council approve this budget, which includes allocations of more than R450 million for the acquisition of land for the purpose of human settlements delivery and R21 million for employment creation in the City's Solid Waste Management Department as part of the Expanded Public Works Programme.
Other additional allocations include R4,5 million to the Safety and Security Directorate for the City's School Resource Officers and Stabilisation Project to aid communities in volatile areas. Provision of R28 million has also been made to this directorate who worked non-stop to create a safe environment for our residents during the festive season. The budget furthermore allocates R1 million in additional funds to the City's Problem Building Unit.
More than R4 million has been earmarked to our Social Development and Early Childhood Development Directorate to enhance service delivery in our more vulnerable communities.
Transport for Cape Town will also receive an additional R1,5 million to spend on traffic calming measures in the current financial year.
An Adjustments Budget is a standard and expected process in municipalities around the country and in National Government. It is based on a review of the current factors influencing government and the financial changes which are required. It includes additional grant funding which has been made available, the shifting of funds between votes, and the inclusion of roll-over funds.
One such factor, as mentioned in the Adjustments Budget, is the lower than anticipated income from the sale of water, due to lower than expected water sales in the first half of the financial year.
The City's cash backing/surplus reconciliation over the 2014/15 Medium Term Revenue and Expenditure Framework shows a positive and increasing trend, which is an indication that the City will be able to afford its commitments over the next three years.
Ensuring that we continue to be a well-run city is the greatest respect that we can pay to our ratepayers and to our more vulnerable residents.
Statement issued by Alderman Ian Neilson, Deputy Mayor, City of Cape Town, January 22 2015
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