City’s annual report tabled at Council
29 January 2020
Statement by the City's Executive Deputy Mayor, Alderman Ian Neilson
Speech delivered by the City’s Executive Deputy Mayor, Alderman Ian Neilson, today, 29 January 2020, during a full sitting of Council.
Speaker, today we table our Annual Report, which provides an overview of the City’s financial and non-financial performance in the previous financial year. This is a legislative requirement in terms of the Local Government: Municipal Finance Management Act of 2003.
The Annual Report provides feedback to our residents and stakeholders on the City’s achievements against the objectives set out in the Integrated Development Plan, detailing the administration’s financial, operational, social and environmental performance from 1 July 2018 to 30 June 2019.
The 2018/19 Annual Report reflects our progress with regard to service delivery to our residents, and to creating an opportunity city that enables economic growth and job creation, and provides support to those who need it most.
It also reflects our continuous efforts to provide our residents with a well-governed and corruption-free administration.
I would like to take a moment to thank our public representatives and officials throughout the administration for their tireless efforts to provide high-quality services to all who live, do business in or visit our city. The pages of this report are a testament to your hard work and dedication, during a period characterised by challenging operating conditions.
I would briefly like to mention some of the highlights from the City’s five Strategic Focus Areas, as detailed in the Annual Report.
Highlights for Strategic Focus Area 1, the Opportunity City, include:
• Savings of over 193 GWh of electricity through energy use improvements in municipal operations; this translates to avoided emissions of 167 810 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e)
• Creation of 36 910 Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) employment opportunities
• Installation of nearly 1 095 km of fibre-optic cable across the metro, which includes cabling connecting City buildings, bus stations, cameras and other infrastructure vital to service delivery
• Installation of 17 new public Wi-Fi locations and 64 new public Wi-Fi access points
Highlights for Strategic Focus Area 2, the Safe City, include:
• Expansion of the CCTV footprint to 1 6502 cameras across the metro
• Expansion of the radio communications network for neighbourhood watches, bringing the number of radios, radio repeaters and base stations provided to date to 1 700
• Deployment of an additional 198 law enforcement offices and 17 traffic officers
• Expansion of the safe schools project to 136 school resource officers deployed at various schools
• Establishment of a dedicated Rail Enforcement Unit, which has led to numerous arrests and the recovery of a large amount of stolen rail infrastructure.
Highlights for Strategic Focus Area 3, the Caring City, include:
• Provision of 3 687 new toilets and 716 taps to informal settlements and 164 new toilets and taps with hand basins to backyarders
• Installation of 2 440 subsidised electricity connections
• Replacement of 15 964 metres of water mains and 10 069 metres of sewer mains
• Transfer of more than 13 000 title deeds
• Assisting more than 5 000 tenants to become homeowners through the City’s rental sales programme
Highlights for Strategic Focus Area 4, the Inclusive City, include:
• Provision of rates assistance to the amount of R2,97 billion, of which R1,691 billion went towards indigent relief, and R1,278 billion towards rates rebates for qualifying residents. This represented an increase of R203 million in the total package of rates assistance.
• Answering of approximately 2,1 million calls by the City’s corporate call centre, with customers being assisted in their preferred language
• Provision of shelter to 616 people as part of the Safe Spaces initiative, with the transitional shelter facility beneath the Culemborg bridge offering up to 230 homeless people access to beds, ablution facilities, water and storage space for their belongings
• Provision of social care interventions to 5 114 persons, successfully reintegrating 202 people with their families/communities of origin
• Assistance of more than 2 258 clients at various centres through the Matrix programme for alcohol and drug treatment, achieving a rate of 83% clean drug tests for those in the programme
Highlights for Strategic Focus Area 5, the Well-run City, include:
• Maintenance of an Aaa.za and Prime-1 national scale rating; the highest possible credit quality rating in the national context
• Affirmation by Moody’s Investors Service of the City’s Baa3 and Prime-3 rating
• Recorded capital expenditure of R5,39 billion, amounting to 80,11% of capital spend
Speaker, the City of Cape Town, like every other metro and municipality in the country, continues to walk the fine line between expediting service delivery, and operating within the regulatory and legislative frameworks that govern the provision of services.
In this, we are guided by our internal policies, mechanisms and structures, as well as external stakeholders such as National and Provincial Treasury, and the Office of the Auditor-General.
In a complex and continually evolving regulatory environment, we strive always to maintain our record of good governance and compliance. When we fall short, we prioritise immediate self-correction.
For the 2018/19 financial year, the City of Cape Town has received an unqualified audit opinion with findings from the Auditor-General. This is the City’s 16th consecutive unqualified audit opinion.
The findings relate largely to the Auditor-General determining that certain procurement and contract management processes were not properly complied with in terms of the Municipal Finance Management Act. Findings of irregular expenditure relate mainly to contracts and quotations awarded to bidders based on functionality criteria that were not stipulated in the original invitation for bidding and quotations; the extension or modification of contracts without the approval of a properly delegated official; failure to monitor the performance of certain contract providers on a monthly basis; failure to stipulate the minimum threshold for local production and content in the procurement of certain commodities; and failure of certain persons in service of the City to declare the private or business interests of close family members in contracts awarded by the City.
It must be noted that this identified irregular expenditure has not impacted on service delivery, as all expenditure concerned is 100% accounted for and has been used for operational purposes and the delivery of services to our communities.
The City is addressing the shortcomings identified by the Auditor-General through its specialised project management and performance unit and steps are being taken to correct processes.
The City’s governance and financial management remain sound and strong, and remedial measures have been taken in line with this administration’s emphasis on being an accountable and transparent government.
The Annual Report will be sent to the Council’s Municipal Public Accounts Committee for oversight, further interrogation and recommendation to Council for any action required.
Speaker, I move that the Annual Report be tabled and that it be made available for public participation.
Thank you.
End
Published by:
City of Cape Town, Media Office
