About the Council

In the new dispensation, the eThekwini council has 200 councillors. One hundred of them are elected ward councillors and the other hundred candidates were elected to represent political parties on the basis of proportional representation.

Mayor
The Mayor of our municipality is the chairman of the Executive Committee. He performs the duties, including any ceremonial functions, and exercises the powers delegated to the mayor by the municipal council or executive committee.

Executive Committee (EXCO)
The council established an Executive committee comprising 9 members. The mayor decides when and where EXCO meets. It is composed in such a way that parties and interests represented in the Unicity council are represented in EXCO in the same proportion. 

The Executive committee is the management or principle committee of the municipality. It receives reports from other committees of council and must forward these reports together with it's recommendations to the full council. 

Supporting Committees
The council has six committees and every councillor serves on at least one committee. Members of the Executive Committee are tasked with the responsibility of chairing the supporting committees.

The supporting committees are: 

• Tender and Contract Committee
• Town Planning 
• Health and Safety
• Economic Development and Planning
• Infrastructure, Transport, Culture and Recreation
• Housing, Land and Human Resources

These committees meet at least once a month. They have certain delegated powers by which they take decisions on behalf of the council, and are required to report and make recommendations to Council on matters falling within their spheres of operation.

Office of the Speaker
The Local Government Municipal Structures Act provides that each municipal council must have a chairperson who is called the Speaker. The Speaker is elected by the council from among the councillors at the first sitting of the council after the local government elections.

The Speaker acts as a chairperson at council meetings, and ensures the compliance of the councils code of conduct, rules and orders. He or she also ensures the proper functioning of the legislative side of the council, and is required to be impartial. The Speaker also ensures community participation in legislative initiatives and should communicate with the public on the performance of the council. The speaker has ex officio sitting in all committees of the council, with no voting rights.

Mission
The purpose of the eThekwini Municipality is to facilitate and ensure the provision of infrastructure, services and support for the people of eThekwini. In this way, it creates an enabling environment for all citizens to realise their full potential and access opportunities, thus enabling  them to contribute towards a vibrant and sustainable economy with full employment, creating a better quality of life for all.

Vision
By 2020 the eThekwini Municipality will be Africa's most caring and liveable city.