Housing in Southern Africa June 2016

Infrastucture & Mixed Use

The City of Cape Town’s transport authority has spent more than 90% of the budget for major projects, maintenance and cleaning of storm water infrastructure. Stormwater infrastructure

T he City of Cape Town Executive Mayor, Patricia de Lille recently told media that Supply Chain Management may request quota- tions directly fromcommunity-based vendors for the procurement of goods and services for up to R30 000. This includes construction, goods and services. De Lille explains that when goods and services are sourced fromservice providers outside of the community ward, or sub-council, this creates an uneven spread in the creation of and access to economic opportunities. “We understand the financial strain that is placed on community- based suppliers in order to comply with mandatory legislative require- ments.” She says, “We want to provide small companies and individuals with an opportunity to provide ser- vices. In order to address this, the T ransport for Cape Town (TCT) has prioritised informal settle- ments and open drainage sys- tems. According to Brett Herron, Mayoral Committee Member Transport for Cape Town, “We do more frequent inspections of the infrastructure and increase cleaning operations as far as possible in the run-up to the rainy season. The budget for maintenance and cleaning projects in informal settle- ments is R11,5 million for the cur- rent financial year (2015/16), with expenditure currently standing at R8,4 million. A further R1,95 million will be spent this month. Almost 7 500 km of pipes, culverts and underground conduits across the city are cleaned on a monthly basis. Every three months 180 000 catch-pits are cleaned. There are over 85 000 stormwater manholes, which are cleaned quarterly. A further 850 stormwater reten- tion ponds are cleaned every three months. The city has 1 200 km of rivers, canals and open channels, which are cleaned at least twice a year. The budget for the cleaning and maintenance of stormwater infra- structure andwater sources includes: Blaauwberg District: R8,1 million;

city has drafted a StandardOperating Procedure (SOP), step by step guide on how small businesses can access such opportunities.” This includes what they need to do to ensure that they are compliant with the City’s Supply Chain Manage- ment Policy. The SOP will also require con- tractors to make use of local labour through the Expanded Public Works Programme database. The city needs service providers for: cleaning and waste removal; catering; laundry and hygiene and general maintenance. Sub-council managers will invite local vendors to submit applications and register on the City of Cape Town’s database. The sub-council will also oversee the process together with various departments, who allocate work to service providers. Kraaifontein District: R9,7 million; Bellville District: R11,9 million; Som- erset West District: R10,8 million; Cape Town District: R10,2 million; Athlone District: R12,8 million; Khay- elitsha District: R12,6 million and Plumstead District: R8,1 million. Herron notes that expenditure currently stands at R60,8million, with another R17,6million to be spent this month. As part of its maintenance activities, TCT hires specialised river

and stormwater network cleaning equipment with long-reach excava- tors and also use wheeled loaders to remove rubbish. It is difficult and costly to remove silt and other debris from underground infrastructure. The inlets along roads and the con- nection pipes are cleaned regularly. This is mostly done by hand crews and in areas with high pollution levels, such as in the informal settle- ments and high-density housing. ■

City invests in community-based business “Our vision is to level the playing field, but also to get into a position where the person running a cleaning or construction company lives in the area. This will help to build a sense of community pride in uplifting the area – whether it is cleaning, construction, alterations or renovations.”

De Lille notes that more impor- tantly it will bring a greater sense of financial security, which in turn un- locks other opportunities for contrac- tors. “Job creation is the single big- gest challenge and our main priority.” For this financial year, the number of B-BBEE service providers who have conducted business with the city rose to 2 796, or 84,2% of service providers. A total of 177 660 purchase orders were issued to B-BBEE vendors, which equates to 93,75%, worth R11,7 billion, representing 92,3% of the total expenditure for the period. ■

June 2016