15 August 2021
Current Tshwane administration has reduced the deficit we inherited by R3.4 billion.
It is commonly known that when this administration assumed office in November 2020, we inherited a deficit on the operating account from the provincial administrators for the 2019/20 financial year that had exceeded R4 billion. This deficit placed us in an incredibly difficult financial position as we immediately had to get to work to stabilize City finances and move towards a more sustainable financial position.
The first intervention was to approve an Adjustments budget that reduced expenditure to match the lower income levels the City was facing. I am pleased to note that as of the end of June 2021 in reviewing our financial performance we had reduced the deficit on the operating account by R3.4 billion with the City now only facing a deficit of R934 million which we intend to eradicate in the coming financial year that has started on 1 July 2021.
Our ability to manage the deficit has come from implementing numerous cost containment measures, restricting unnecessary spending, stricter controls on overtime and refocusing the work of the institution so that we focus on our core deliverables.
It has also required that we implement credit control actions against outstanding debtors who have run up bills with the City which they have not paid or made arrangements to address the debt. This has required us to use debt collection agencies and implement electricity cut offs.
Furthermore, we have aggressively rolled out the installation of prepaid meters as these will assist greatly in ensuring a steady stream of income.
The work to date has clearly paid off as we have massively been able to reduce the deficit in the 2020/21 financial year. Going forward we will continue to look for avenues where the City can increase its revenue and better manage our costs so that we strengthen the financial position of the municipality.
I want to thank all of our residents and businesses who have diligently paid their bills and supported the City.
Media enquiries: Sipho Stuurman
SiphoSt@tshwane.gov.za
