AS WE are approaching the 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children campaign, we want to reiterate government’s call for 365 days activism against gender-based violence and femicide. The 16-day campaign is commemorated from 25 November (the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women) to 10 December (Human Rights Day). If there has ever been a time to intensify this fight, it is now.
We will not grow tired of calling on men to take a stand against all forms of abuse and to protect the vulnerable. I want to call on eThekwini Men’s Sector to continue with their collaborative initiatives of mentoring the boy child. They have been working to teach young men to respect themselves and to protect women. This is a positive step forward to curb spiraling incidents of gender-based violence. During November we will host a customer service lecture to relay messages about service delivery and where we are working to improve. This lecture will assist in facilitating interaction and engagement between staff, management, and executives on the customer service approach of the Municipality. It is important that when we render services, we also do introspection.
This will assist us in gauging the level of service we provide to our customers and where we can improve individually and as an organisation. I am pleased to report that our application for the rollover of the Municipal Disaster Recovery Grant, the Project Preparation Support Grant, and the Neighbourhood Development Partnership Grant for the Public Employment Programme, totaling R1.6 billion, has been approved by National Treasury. After extensive conditional assessments, an estimated amount of R543 million has been approved to implement the necessary interventions for infrastructure restoration after the June 2023 floods. It is also important to mention that the Municipality is in the process of issuing a Request for Proposal inviting lenders to provide an annuity loan.
It must be noted that in fulfilling its financial obligations, the City employs a three-pronged strategy, leveraging grants, internal reserves, and borrowings. For the ongoing fiscal year, 2023/2024, Council has granted its approval for borrowings amounting to R1.5 billion. These funds are pivotal for the realisation of capital expenditure projects that encompass a diverse spectrum of infrastructure improvements. In closing, I want to take this opportunity to remind customers that the window period for the debt relief programme closes on 31 December.
We encourage residents with debt that is older than three months and who are struggling to pay the Municipality to come forward. They can visit their nearest Sizakala Centre where friendly customer service officials are ready to assist them.
