RATE IT: From township economies to service delivery & cannabis— 5 important points from David Makhura’s Sopa

Don't have time to read? Listen to the TL;DR summary below, provided by the writer.

Service delivery, unemployment and developing township economies were some of the talking points that featured prominently in Gauteng premier David Makhura’s state of the province address (Sopa) on Monday.

Makhura said efforts to ensure the smooth running of programmes, including the promotion of urban agriculture and passing the township economy bill, were already under way. 

His address comes almost two weeks after President Cyril Ramaphosa delivered his state of the nation address (Sona) and outlined plans for the year ahead. 

The premier said the provincial government will work collaboratively with the national and local governments to champion service delivery.

Here are five talking points from the premier’s address: 

SERVICE DELIVERY

Makhura said the provincial government is working in “emergency mode” to address service delivery in all communities. 

“As we make the economy and jobs the centre stage and number one priority over the next two years, we will also work closely with national government and our municipalities to focus on service delivery and improve infrastructure.”

The premier said the crisis of homelessness was exposed at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.

UNEMPLOYMENT

The premier said Gauteng remained the key player in contributing to economic growth in the country. Efforts were under way to double this while responding to unemployment. 

“We want to drastically reduce poverty and promote economic empowerment of those previously excluded. The provincial war room will bring together businesses and government to focus on critical interventions. We need to direct all efforts at creating more jobs.”

FOOD SECURITY

The premier said Gauteng was promoting urban and other means of agriculture to ensure food security.

Women and young people will be involved in line with the province’s mission to empower them. 

“We are working with industry players and organised farmers to ensure food insecurity is addressed and to promote urban agriculture as a sector for employment and business. We have been talking with the cannabis industry and have identified unique opportunities of this sector in Gauteng.”

SUPPORTING TOWNSHIP BUSINESSES

Makhura said the province will focus on supporting township businesses and women and youth-owned businesses. 

“We have been the champion of the township economic development and revitalisation bill. Between 2014 and 2019, the Gauteng  government supported township businesses extensively through public procurement policy to the value of more than R20bn in buying goods from those businesses.”

DEVELOPING TOWNSHIP REAL ESTATE

The premier said there are efforts to formalise informal real estate in townships where some residents rent back rooms. This will ensure legal connections to services. 

He said this will empower property owners who have these businesses as their sources of income and reduce the debt of services to the municipality. 

“These are income-generating opportunities for people in the townships. Their formalisation will empower and support livelihoods and incomes. Often, these back rooms are not properly connected to infrastructure, sewage and electricity. Some are not built properly.”