Two of Gauteng’s largest metros, Johannesburg and Tshwane, are looking to use SA’s G20 presidency to boost tourism and attract investment, amid long-standing challenges such as dwindling revenue collection, dilapidated infrastructure and disparities in service delivery between affluent areas and townships.
The two metros will jointly host the U20 summit, scheduled for later this year, where mayors of the major G20 cities will gather to develop policy recommendations and advocate for action on climate resilience, economic recovery and social equity. The policy recommendations will directly influence the G20 summit of world leaders in Johannesburg in November.
In the lead-up to the leaders summit, Johannesburg and Tshwane seek to reclaim their positions as international hubs for business, diplomacy and culture, Johannesburg mayor Dada Morero said.
For Tshwane, the U20 follows the release of the auditor-general’s report for the 2023/24 financial year, which gave the city a qualified audit opinion, as in the previous year. Tshwane incurred R2.3bn in irregular expenditure in 2023/24, up from R1.9bn in the previous financial year. Fruitless and wasteful expenditure was largely unchanged at R347m while unauthorised expenditure increased from R423m to R2.1bn.
Speaking at a launch event of the U20 on Monday, Tshwane mayor Nasiphi Moya said the metro had initially allocated R10bn for the hosting of the U20. The allocation was, however, removed from the city’s adjustment budget, passed last week, because it could not afford it. The city is now seeking sponsorships from the private sector
“Across Tshwane and Johannesburg, people face the daily realities of unemployment, poverty and inequality. These challenges are not unique to us; they are shared by cities across Africa, Latin America and the developing world. And yet, even in the face of these difficulties, our cities remain places of immense potential,” she said.
“Our key priorities of this U20 cycle: economic opportunities and financing, climate action and urban resilience, social inclusion and equity, and digital transformation and innovation.”
Johannesburg is facing a similar scenario. Its adjustment budget was scheduled to be passed last week but has been delayed by fighting among coalition partners. ActionSA, which is in a coalition with the ANC and EFF in the city, refused to vote for the budget along with the DA, which sits on the opposition benches.
Johannesburg, with a budget of about R76bn, is seeking adjustments to prioritise new initiatives, particularly in light of the municipality’s prolonged struggles with water shortages over the past several months.
Morero says they will advocate for climate change funding and municipal financing at the G20 summit with representatives from Addis Ababa, Accra and other participating cities.
“About the climate change, we’ll put it on the agenda because we think central governments have a responsibility throughout the world to fund climate change. We will be put into the agenda financing of municipalities because that area in itself remains problematic not only in SA but world over,” Morero said.
“Our revenue has been shrinking over the years because the model of local government was established on the assumptions that the surpluses of water and electricity will finance municipalities to a large extent, but with people now moving to alternative energy sources and water sources by doing boreholes and so on, we’ve seen that, of course, our revenues are shrinking, which requires us to rethink and reposition financing of municipalities.”
With Loyolo Mkentane
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