Talking to the public: Joburg Executive Mayor Amos Masondo on one of many roadshows around the city

Listen to the budget on radio JOBURGERS will be able to hear first hand how the mayor plans to spend the council's cash. Read more RELATED LINKS: Soweto residents talk to the mayor CRIME, electricity and housing are the key priorities for Soweto residents, the council hears at its budget and IDP meeting in the township. Read more Yeoville residents have their say TAKING note of what is important to its citizens, Yeoville residents were given an opportunity to tell their ward councillor what their priorities were for the City's budget. Read more Integrated Development Plan WHAT the 2005/2006 IDP holds. Adobe Acrobat document Draft Medium Term Budget WHAT the Draft Medium Term Budget holds. Adobe Acrobat document

Countdown to Joburg budget day AFTER months of talking to the public to find out their spending priorities, the mayor is ready to deliver his budget. At nearly R20-billion, it is expected to be the biggest out of any metro yet. May 23, 2005 By Thomas Thale FOLLOWING months of consultation with Joburg residents on the City's funding priorities, Executive Mayor Councillor Amos Masondo is preparing to deliver his annual budget speech on Wednesday, 25 May. This year's budget is expected to come in at just under R20-billion, making it the biggest budget yet of any municipality in the country. Masondo will also announce the tariff increases that will come into effect on 1 July. The capital budget is expected to total R2,6-billion, well above the R1,97-billion spent last year. Judging from the pledges made during the public participation process and sentiments expressed at the Stakeholders' Forum, much of the capital budget will be used to tackle infrastructure backlogs in previously neglected areas like Soweto, Ivory Park, Diepsloot and Orange Farm. These areas are in dire need of housing, tarred roads, streetlights, sewerage, electricity and recreation facilities. In the wake of the many electricity outages that wreaked havoc across Joburg early in the year, the City has committed itself to making money available for upgrading the electricity infrastructure. The mayor is likely to keep his word and put more than R300-million aside for this purpose. A portion of the budget probably will be used to overhaul water infrastructure in previously neglected areas. Last year it was estimated that the City lost 60 percent of the water used in Soweto alone as a result of ageing infrastructure. Fixing this would save millions of rand. Joburg has also committed itself to overhauling public transport by setting up new corridors linking the east and the west, and the north and the south. It is expected that money for this should also be included in the budget. With construction on Gautrain expected to start towards the end of this year, it probably will allocate a sizeable amount for developing transport nodes linked to the train routes. Masondo is also expected to make money available for the City's area regeneration projects that are aimed at arresting urban decay. The mayor will deliver his speech at 4pm on Wednesday. Permission to use web site material Publishers may use material from this site free of charge, as long as: Credit is given to either the "City of Johannesburg website (www.joburg.org.za)" or to "Johannesburg News Agency (www.joburg.org.za)"; If the article is used online, a link is provided to the original article on this website; The name of the article's author is acknowledged; The webmaster is informed of how and where the material is used (fill in this brief online form). Johannesburg News Agency is operated by BIG Media at 011-484-1400 Print this Page E-mail this article to a friend Help using Joburg.org.za