Administration

Mayor's final-term address

Pre-agendaAugust 20, 20261 speaker · 18 minutes

18′

minutes

Democratic Alliance18′

Summary

AI-generated text

The Executive Mayor, Mr. Hill-Lewis, delivers an address at the final council meeting of the term, reflecting on five years in office and outlining achievements and future commitments. He highlights 418,000 new jobs added in Cape Town over the term, a two-thirds reduction in sewer pump station failures from over 300 to 102, over 200 megawatts of independent power procured, 12,400 state-subsidised homes delivered, the Cape Flats MyCiTi expansion, 1,380 new law enforcement and metro police officers trained and deployed and over 1,300 new shelter beds. He commits to procuring 700 megawatts of independent power, establishing South Africa's first metro police detective branch, more red-tape cutting, and more affordable housing on released City land.

Main issues

Job creation and the credibility of the 418,000 jobs figure, with opposition parties questioning quality and permanence of jobs
Electricity costs, Eskom price increases and the City's energy independence programme
Urban growth pressures, housing backlogs and population growth in Cape Town

The address was Mayor Hill-Lewis's final City Council speech of the term. The 418,000 jobs figure comes from StatsSA labour force data for Q1 2022 to Q2 2026. The City says this is 418,000 of the 841,000 jobs added across all metros, or about 50%. ANC council leader Ndithini Tyhido responded that the mayor was using statistics to mislead Capetonians. Because the figures are headline labour-force numbers, they don't show how secure or well paid the jobs are. That is the basis of the opposition's questions about quality and permanence.

On electricity, roughly 70% of the City's tariff income goes to buying bulk power from Eskom, so Eskom price increases weigh heavily on household bills. In early September the City concluded two 20-year power purchase agreements worth 70MW with solar plants in Atlantis and Philippi. More are expected under a competitive tender for up to 200MW. The City plans to buy up to 700MW of independent power over time. It says the first two deals save 19% to 21% compared with current Eskom rates. It is reported to be the first South African metro to buy power on the open market. A separate tender seeks up to 500MW from private electricity traders.

On housing and growth, the mayor has said 1.2 million residents live in informal structures in Cape Town. The City has also released land for affordable housing, with a pipeline of 12,000 well-located units near the CBD and other business districts. The speech doubled as the launch of the mayor's re-election campaign ahead of the local government elections. Many of the figures cited are therefore also campaign claims.

Statements(1)

AI-generated text

GH

Geordin Hill-LewisIntroducerExecutive Mayor · Democratic Alliance

Cape Town has added 418,000 new jobs over the five-year term, representing almost 50% of all jobs added across South Africa's eight metros — more than the three Gauteng metros and eThekwini combined. Sewer pump station failures have been cut from over 300 to just 102, a two-thirds reduction, through sustained investment in replacing hundreds of kilometres of ageing pipe. The City procured over 200 megawatts of independent power to reduce reliance on Eskom, whose prices have risen 907% since 2007, and commits to procuring 700 megawatts going forward to make electricity affordable again. On safety, 1,380 new law enforcement and metro police officers were trained and deployed, and the next term will see South Africa's first metro police detective branch established to tackle violent crime. Further commitments include more red-tape cutting, continued release of City-owned land for affordable housing to address apartheid spatial planning, and a call to Capetonians to renew the mandate so the administration can continue this work.