Day: September 1, 2022

With the arrival of Spring today, a campaign to ‘spring clean’ Cape Town has been launched by Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis and Mayco Member for Urban Waste Alderman Grant Twigg. The City is adding 300 more boots on the ground to clean Cape Town this spring, with a call for residents to get involved in community clean-ups. A 24-hour toll-free hotline has also been created for residents to report tip-offs about illegal dumping activity and other by-law infringements. Potential rewards are available from R1000 up to R5000 in the case of an arrest or conviction.

Residents are being asked to get involved by organising a clean-up where it matters most to them, with the aim of getting Cape Town looking sparkling clean and fresh this spring, including our parks, public spaces, beaches, rivers, and roads.

'We can change the culture of litter and dumping in Cape Town, but it will take effort from all of us. Change is easy: first, none of us should ever litter! Then, each one of us can tell someone to stop littering, or to pick up their litter when we see them doing it. And each of us can take a few seconds to pick up some litter ourselves. We are calling on residents, schools, businesses, and community groups to join the #SpringCleanCT campaign.

'Let's take pride in our city and show what's possible when we unite as Team Cape Town. This spring, the City is adding a crew of 300 to its area cleaning workforce to target major routes and littering hotspots. Law enforcement officials will also be stepping up enforcement against illegal dumping and issuing of fines for littering,' said Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis.

A 24-hour toll-free hotline (0800 110077) has been created for residents to report tip-offs about illegal dumping activity and other by-law infringements.

Those interested in joining a clean-up can get in touch with their local subcouncil, local councillor, or check for clean-up groups in your area.

Over 110 clean-ups have been organised by community organisations and ward councillors since the Mayor launched the Keep Cape Town Clean initiative earlier this year.

Report Illegal Dumping

Alderman Grant Twigg, Mayco Member for Urban Waste Management said: 'We have created a 24-hour toll-free number to report tip-offs about illegal dumping activity. If you see illegal dumping, take down the vehicle license plate number and report them to us. They could be fined up to R5 000, have their vehicle impounded, or face a two-year prison sentence. For every fine and conviction, the City is offering a reward from R1000 up to R5000.'

The public can use the below contact details to communicate with the City about illegal dumping in their area:

24-Hour toll-free Tip-off line: 0800 110077

Email: solidwaste.bylaw@capetown.gov.za.

To notify the City about dumping that needs to be cleared please call 0860 103 089.

Get involved by organising or joining a clean-up

Tag your clean-up with #SpringCleanCT to show your pride in our beautiful mother city!

Feel free to include us on:

Twitter: @CityofCT, @Geordinhl, and @GrantTwigg

Facebook: City of Cape Town, Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis, and Alderman Grant Twigg

For more info, visit: www.capetown.gov.za/springclean

Source: City Of Cape Town

Statement by Alderman James Vos, Mayoral Committee Member for Economic Growth

This week the City launched the Food and Beverage Growth Coalition together with the Western Cape Economic Development Partnership and industry business partners.

The world has been battered by a series of complex challenges in the recent past, and Cape Town has not been spared. South Africa is facing the effects of resilience-testing challenges such as load shedding, the pandemic, and global conflict. As a result, many people are finding it difficult to make ends meet as companies are forced to pass the rising costs on to the consumer.

As such, there has been sustainable responsiveness calls for collaborative partnerships between all sectors – government, business, communities and academia in the form of growth coalitions within Cape Town's most high-value industries. These structured and outcome-driven stakeholder engagements are critical for sharing knowledge, planning and implementing together, ensuring alignment for the realisation of growth opportunities and resolution of challenges.

The City is committed to eliminating the barriers to doing business, and through this approach, will support its current regulatory reform process.

Food and Beverage Sector Growth Coalition – the first chapter

Food and beverages have always been one of the biggest sub-categories within Cape Town's manufacturing industry, contributing 3,6% of Cape Town's gross value add and 4,1% of its formal employment.

The industry contributes a substantial portion of the Cape's export and destination profile. More importantly, food security is one of our most important concerns as a government and thus we must work closely with businesses to ensure that the industry has the resources to adequately respond to trends and stresses when they happen.

For the launch of the initiative, we have hit the ground running with my team and I already having held engagements with several business leaders.

These meetings allowed us to gain insights into the challenges and innovations within this specific sector and establish a working relationship with businesses.

Growth in food and beverage exports paints a positive picture for the industry with beverage exports from Cape Town growing by 21% between 2015 and 2016 and fish exports by 22,7%.

Recent findings from the Trade Research Advisory further show that South Africa stands to generate up to R840 billion by fully capitalising on the export agreements under the EU-SADC Economic Partnership Agreement with foodstuffs such as fruit, dairy goods and canned foods making up a significant part.

Ultimately, the Growth Coalition will assist the business sector to develop action plans to boost development and ultimately take advantage of such trade pacts.

Other sectors

Following the launch and roll-out of the Food and Beverage Coalition, the City plans to follow suit with other sectors such as marine manufacturing and creative production.

The emphasis should be on improving our processes and systems, to improve the quality of engagements and the initiatives that are implemented. To grow our economy and create jobs, there is a need for new businesses to be established, existing businesses expanded, and new investors invited and assisted with operational setup.

We aim to grow our presence in the current markets while working to access new regions.

In all this, the City of Cape Town stands ready to collaborate with businesses to achieve our shared goal of growing our economy and creating much-needed jobs.

Source: City Of Cape Town

The City of Cape Town has appointed nine new highly skilled, purpose driven and innovative leaders to serve on its Executive Management Team. The Executive Directors have been appointed after a vigorous recruitment and selection process: a total of 867 applications were received for the nine positions, with 38 candidates shortlisted and interviewed over the past five months.

The appointment of three of the new Executive Directors was approved by Council on Thursday, 28 July 2022, and the other six at the Council meeting on 26 May 2022.

They join the City of Cape Town's City Manager, Lungelo Mbandazayo, and three other Executive Directors: Nolwandle Gqiba – Executive Director of Human Settlements; Dalene Campbell – Executive Director of Urban Mobility; and Michael Webster – Executive Director of Water and Sanitation, who are on existing contracts with the City.

The Executive Directors report directly to the City Manager.

The newly appointed Executive Directors are:

• Executive Director: Corporate Services – Ernest Sass;

• Executive Director: Community Services and Health – Zukiswa Mandlana;

• Executive Director: Economic Growth – Ruby Gelderbloem;

• Chief Financial Officer – Kevin Jacoby;

• Executive Director: Energy – Kadri Nassiep;

• Executive Director: Safety and Security – Vincent Botto;

• Executive Director: Future Planning and Resilience – Gareth Morgan;

• Executive Director: Spatial Planning and Environment – Rob McGaffin; and

• Executive Director: Urban Waste Management – Luzuko Mdunyelwa.

'The City of Cape Town is a dynamic, world-class city and rated among the most sought after cities to work and live. It calls for leadership that will meet and exceed expectations. The City has followed a vigorous process in appointing the top management team. The competition was stiff: to be selected from 867 applicants is an achievement in itself and I want to congratulate the new Executive Directors.

'They have been appointed for their strategic ability, sound financial acumen and an innovative, influential and collaborative approach to managing and leading this great city of ours. In addition, we have ensured the individuals to lead our administration have sound knowledge and understanding of the local government environment – this is extremely important, given that local government is at the coalface of service delivery. We have high expectations, and so do our residents. I want to wish our new top management all of the best,' said the City's Mayoral Committee Member for Corporate Services, Alderman Theresa Uys.

Six of the Executive Directors – Ernest Sass, Ruby Gelderbloem, Kevin Jacoby, Kadri Nassiep, Vincent Botto and Gareth Morgan – started their term at the City on 1 July 2022. The other three Executive Directors – Zukiswa Mandlana, Rob McGaffin and Luzuko Mdunyelwa – have commenced duty today, 1 September 2022.

The appointment of the Executive Management Team (EMT) is a legislative driven process, meaning Council must approve the new appointments and a report on the appointment process of the EMT members must be submitted to the Western Cape Provincial Minister of Local Government, Environmental Affairs and Development Planning to ensure that the City has followed due process.

'The City's Executive Management Team is responsible for excellence in service delivery and municipal operations. They must be customer focused, honest, responsive and committed. This is a huge responsibility and privilege and we are looking forward to working with the team,' said Alderman Uys.

Source: City Of Cape Town

KWAZULU-NATAL - Today, the “Captain Lollipop - Be My Buddy Not a Bully" road show continued with a visit to Marlborough Park Junior Primary School hosted by SAPS Brighton Beach.

Corporate Communications officer, Captain Louise Le Roux engaged with 291 learners through educational talks displaying colourful foam presentation boards created by herself, with cartoon characters to assist her in enhancing the visual learning experience for the little ones when she engages them.

During phase one of the road show, learners in the foundation phase of local educational institutes will be targeted.

Today, a total of 291 learners from Dirkie Uys Senior Primary School were addressed about bullying in schools. The various forms of physical bullying were explained through an enactment activity.

The theft of personal property from fellow learners such as monies (tuckshop/transport), school uniform, stationary, lunch, and school books were addressed. The consequences of theft of school property were also explained to the learners.

Learners were encouraged to practise respect and discipline and to use the words "thank you", "please", and “I am sorry" (if they had done something wrong), when engaging their educators and fellow learners.

Through the support of educators, 291 school anti-bullying information guides, created by Captain Louise Le Roux, will be placed in the learners’ homework books as support material for parents, guardians and caregivers.

Through this Safer School’s initiative, the strategic objectives of the SAPS was attained. The presentation aimed to increase the learners’ level of awareness about bullying and the impact thereof.

Captain Louise Le Roux thanks the Principal and educators of Dirkie Uys Seniot Primary School for affording the SAPS a platform to host this Safer Schools initiative.

Source: South African Police Service

This week, the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Economic Growth, Alderman James Vos, and the CEO of Cape Town Tourism, Enver Duminy, kicked off Tourism Month at the Cape Town Ziplines sharing details of a series of exciting activations that showcase Cape Town’s world-class, diverse destination offering, including the launch of “Freedom to Wish” – a give-back initiative for locals.

Speaking to media, Alderman Vos said the holiday season looks set to be a busy one and this was an important time to highlight the variety of experiences tourists can find around the metro.

'Airlines from the US, UK and Europe are scheduled to increase flights into Cape Town International Airport over the coming weeks. The new Washington route from United Airlines alone is expected to generate up to R523 million in direct tourism spend for the Western Cape in its first year. Turning oceanward, we can also look forward to a total of 104 ship visits with almost 200 000 visitors over the 2022/23 cruise season, unlocking hundreds of millions in estimated passenger spend. Our goal over the next four weeks is to show that Cape Town has something for every kind of traveller to enjoy and also to connect with tourism businesses and remind them of all the City's support systems.

'For example, Cape Town Tourism (CTT), the City's official Destination Marketing Organisation, has rolled out a Neighbourhood Experience Development training manual to help guide SMMEs in developing their businesses and to encourage neighbourhood readiness. The manual was drafted by experts at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology and includes detailed modules on tourist-friendly business models, conducting market research cultural understandings. CTT also hosts business development workshops and networking events for their 1000-plus members and the City government further supports entrepreneurs with business assistance services and a series of free upskilling classes,' said Alderman Vos.

Enver Duminy, CEO of Cape Town Tourism spoke about this year's Tourism Month theme, 'Rethinking Tourism'.

'This Tourism Month, we are aiming to inspire discussions about rethinking tourism for development, including education and job creation, as well as how it impacts the environment and opportunities to grow sustainably through this future-focused theme. Cape Town Tourism and The City of Cape Town are working hard to revitalise the tourism sector in time for the festive period and to show that Cape Town is a city with so much to offer. As the pandemic has taught us, the locals sustain businesses, so rethinking tourism should take into account the domestic market as well. International tourists love Cape Town, but it's the locals who keep the city thriving,' said Duminy.

'To thank the locals for their continued support, the City and Cape Town Tourism are giving locals the Freedom to Wish for the experience of their dreams. We are inviting everyone who lives in Cape Town to nominate themselves or a loved one to tell us the one thing you would love to experience in this city. Whether it's a stay at a 5-star hotel, a cooking class or paragliding over the mountains – we want to help make as many wishes as possible come true,' said Alderman Vos.

'This is a special give-back initiative which we are launching as an industry. Cape Town has world-class attractions which every Capetonian should experience at least once in their life. We are hoping to grant as many wishes as possible this month,' said Duminy.

The initiative ties into Find Your Freedom, CTT's interactive concept wherein users choose an avatar for a virtual taste of Cape Town. You begin by choosing your character – a Fearless Foodie, Nature Warrior or Urban Adventurer – and thereafter decide which part of Cape Town you'd like to experience through a series of first-person perspective videos. As a foodie, for example, you can pop into the award-winning La Colombe restaurant or join a local cooking class.

The expected rise in tourists is also being seen by local operators with Cape Town Ziplines' Managing Director, Clinton Lerm, stating that business is back on track to pre-pandemic levels.

'We are extremely excited about the uptick in visitor figures. This is evident in our forward bookings for October, November and December which are already seeing significant growth. In particular, we are seeing an influx of travellers from the US thanks to the work the City and its partners have done in terms of bringing additional flights to Cape Town. As such, we're looking at doubling our team of staff over the holiday season and thereafter,' said Lerm.

Over and above the "Freedom to Wish" campaign, the month will also include:

An engagement with the Khayelitsha Tourism Forum around small business development

The Halal Hopper - a walking and foodie tour focusing on Cape Town's Muslim culture

Showing Cape Town's remote work travel potential as part of a new partnership with Airbnb

The Find Your Freedom race around the city with 60 schoolchildren

A Durbanville wine valley tour

A meeting with hospitality SMMEs based in Helderburg to highlight CTT's membership benefits

'This variety of events speaks to the 'Rethinking Tourism' theme for this year's Tourism Month. We are aiming to attract travellers from across the country, continent and globe. At the same time, we are empowering small businesses in the sector with access to information, networking opportunities, and exposure,' said Alderman Vos.

The 'rethinking tourism' theme was also in line with the City's strategy to boost the sector. Under the umbrella of the strategy, the City is:

Attracting more flights, via the Air Access initiative, to Cape Town International Airport. In the coming weeks, Delta and United Airlines, both from the US, the UK's Virgin Atlantic, France's Condor and Air France, Air Belgium, Air Mauritius, and the Swiss Edelweiss are scheduled to start their routes while Lufthansa and KLM are set to increase flights for the summer season.

Focusing on attracting the Muslim travel market. The Halal travel sector's contribution to the global economy is massive and there is room for further growth, particularly for South Africa which is already one of the top five destinations for international Muslim travellers. Cape Town was also recently named the Most Promising Muslim-friendly City Destination of The Year (Non- Organisation of Islamic Cooperation) in the HalalTrip Travelers Choice Awards category at the inaugural Halal In Travel Awards from @Crescentrating, the world's leading authority on Halal travel.

Pushing National Government to roll out the Remote Work Visa to allow international working tourists to stay and spend in South Africa for longer. CTT's partnership with Airbnb shows that the Mother City is an ideal destination for digital nomads. The City has learnt that each working tourist tends to spend up to R50 000 during their stay. This revenue reaches multiple industries, including educational institutions, transport, accommodation, retail, and restaurants.

Highlighting the many pocket-friendly experiences in Cape Town.

'You can get out-and-about and explore our incredible city on a free walking tour in Cape Town's central business district, enjoy a picnic in Green Point Urban Park, indulge in Cape Town's best milkshake and hotdog at Wembley Roadhouse in Athlone, get your art fix at Langa's Cultural Precinct or sip on some craft beers and gin in Hout Bay. CTT has compiled a handy 50 things to do for under R50 list with some more tips and ideas.

'Cape Town is a triple-A-rated destination. While this is a term usually used for credit ratings, in this instance I mean three things: accommodation, attractions and aviation. The City government's commitment to maintaining that rating is made clear by the fact that we direct funding towards CTT and its industry development initiatives; Wesgro which administers Air Access, the Convention Bureau and Cruise Cape Town.

'People and places have always been at the core of our tourism destination offering. Rethinking tourism for us means constantly evaluating how this sector benefits the communities of Cape Town. South Africa's tourism sector is forecast to create over 800 000 jobs over the next 10 years. Through hard work, collaboration and innovation, we can realise these opportunities,' said Alderman Vos.

To be part of 'Freedom to Wish', which opens on 12 September and runs until 27 September, simply Whatsapp CTT on 072 662 0626 or send your 60-second video or email freedomtowish@capetown.travel with your name, the name of the person whose wish you'd like us to grant and their desired Cape Town experience. For further details on 'Freedom to Wish', follow CTT on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

Source: City Of Cape Town

PARKTOWN - Gauteng police disrupted an illegal mining operation in Benoni, Ekurhuleni, and arrested more than 30 suspected illegal miners during weekday Operation O Kae Molao led by Gauteng MEC for Community Safety Ms Faith Mazibuko and Gauteng Provincial Commissioner Lieutenant General Elias Mawela on Thursday, 01 September 2022. Suspected illegal miners who are aged between 13 and 54 were found with explosives and other equipment used for illegal mining. The police destroyed the structures used as workshops and hiding places by the illegal miners. The suspects will be charged under legislation related to illegal mining activities and illegal possession of explosives, among other crimes. They will be processed by the Department of Home Affairs as they are all suspected to be undocumented foreign nationals.

The multidisciplinary operation started with the tracing of wanted suspects in the province. More than 1050 people who have been on the run after committing crime that includes gender-based violence were traced and arrested.

In the second phase of the operation, police conducted a roadblock in Benoni where two cars with engine numbers tampered with were impounded. Seven illegal liquor outlets regarded as generators of crime were closed down.

The disruption of illegal mining operations was the third phase of the operation and also took place in other Districts around Gauteng.

Source: South African Police Service

Statement by Alderman JP Smith, Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security

The City of Cape Town's (CCT) Safety and Security Directorate is under increasing pressure to respond to complaints about extortion and kidnapping for ransom. The City has offered assistance through the Safety and Security Investigation Unit (SSIU).

The public is in desperate need of protection against extortion syndicates operating from Long Street through to Khayelitsha.

The increasing prevalence of kidnapping cases is sowing panic in our communities and we all need to do more to assist. As an immediate intervention to the growing extortion cases, the City has directly contacted the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) and the South African Police Service (SAPS) to offer assistance through our SSIU.

As a government that cares deeply about its residents, we are constantly looking at ways to keep Cape Town safe. Among its other functions, the SSIU also assists SAPS and City enforcement agencies with "watching briefs," which is the monitoring and tracking of registered criminal cases through the courts. This is where we are offering our expertise with regard to extortion cases.

Thanks to the work of the SSIU, we have been able to:

recover 30 hijacked council vehicles between 2021 and 2022

achieve 2 920 convictions alongside City enforcement agencies and the South African Police Service (SAPS) between 2016 and 2021

conduct watching briefs for more than 23 000 arrests made by City enforcement staff for the possession of drugs, driving while under the influence, the possession of firearms and ammunition

achieve a large number of meaningful convictions for drug, firearm, copper theft, robbery, extortion and even assisting with Interpol investigations leading to the capture of wanted persons.

Around the world, the state responds to such complex and syndicated crime by establishing integrated task teams bringing together the skills and information of different agencies and spheres of government and their respective staff seconded thereto.

In looking for a more integrated solution, I have also written to the Premier of the Western Cape, Alan Winde, to ask for his intervention in establishing separate fully-fledged extortion and kidnapping task teams between SAPS, Western Cape Government and CCT, wherein the City and Provincial officials are engaged as full participants and are allowed to contribute to crime intelligence, arrests and operations as well as working with specialist prosecutors assigned by the NPA to the task team, to achieve convictions.

In the past, the City pleaded with SAPS to establish an extortion task team and after more than a year delay, a regular meeting is now being convened where the City and Provincial staff play no other role other than listening to some statistical reports on extortion complaints received by the various SAPS stations.

There is no meaningful operational contribution and no meaningful assistance being asked from the City despite our ongoing efforts to assist and add value. When the substantive information is reported at these "Extortion Task Team" (or "priority committee") meetings, the City staff are required to leave the meeting.

The City by virtue of its regular local government functions and increasingly through the operations of its specialised units is increasingly in possession of pertinent information and able to support SAPS in responding to kidnappings and extortion cases and play an active and operational role in interdicting these crimes and ensuring that convictions take place.

Residents can report crime, including extortion, kidnapping and by-law offences anonymously, 24-hours a day, on 0800 110077.

All information is welcomed, but a reward can only be paid if the City's policing resources achieve an operational result that directly relates to information received, like (an) arrest/s, confiscation of contraband or illegal firearms, recovery of stolen goods, the rescue of a kidnapped victim, etc.

Tips received by the dedicated tip-off line are relayed to the relevant City agency. Once they have made an arrest/confiscation, etc. they will submit the application for consideration by the Rewards for Information Committee.

We do have to caution the public that it could take several weeks or months after the arrest or confiscation is made for the reward to be paid out, once all relevant administrative processes have been completed. The system is NOT open to people under the age of 18 or City of Cape Town employees.

Source: City Of Cape Town