Day: November 15, 2022

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MEC Dr Ivan Meyer on Geographic Information Systems Day

Western Cape is committed to the mainstreaming of GIS Technology

“The WCDoA’s Cape Farm Mapper application has become synonymous with evidence-based and spatially informed decision-making in the Western Cape Department of Agriculture, ” said the Western Cape Minister of Agriculture, Dr Ivan Meyer, as the world celebrates GIS (Geographic Information Systems) Day on 16 November 2022.

GIS Day is an annual event held worldwide to celebrate the rapidly evolving technology of GIS. Initiated by spatial analytics world leader Esri(link is external) (Environmental Systems Research Institute), it first took place in 1999.

Dr Ivan Meyer says that the Western Cape Department of Agriculture (WCDoA) has been active in GIS for over three decades.

Dr Meyer said, “during that time, we have developed a vast resource of spatial information related to agriculture in the province. Analysis of the data regularly helps provide information to support decision-making amongst stakeholders, planning partners, our officials and management.”

According to the WCDoA’s GIS specialist scientist, Dr Mike Wallace, GIS allows us to integrate various data types from multiple sources.

Dr Wallace said, “GIS is used in almost every sector of the economy, science, and government. But, more specifically in agriculture, it can be used for many applications. These range from simple farm mapping to monitoring agricultural production with the aid of satellites, complex modelling of crops in response to natural resources and support management of natural disasters. In addition, GIS helps us understand how climate change will affect our world and keep tabs on agriculture’s dynamic “footprint” in our province.”

The latter is supported by a 4-yearly airborne census of agriculture (the so-called “Flyover”) which places a wealth of information at the fingertips of our administrators & regional planners, agribusinesses, researchers, and producers.

Dr Wallace highlights the popularity of the WCDoA’s innovative web application, CapeFarm Mapper (CFM).

The application allows free access to much of our local data to non-specialist users – even facilitating their production of report-quality maps. 

Dr Wallace said, “GIS technology helps organisations track, analyse and visualise data in a way that has never been done before. As a result, it has become much more integrated into the mainstream IT infrastructure and architecture of many organisations – including the WCG”.

“Our department is committed to mainstreaming GIS. We recognised the value of recording geographic location for its activities to facilitate spatial analysis and decision making, ” concluded Dr Meyer.

Cape Farm Mapper can be accessed at: https://gis.elsenburg.com/apps/cfm/(link is external) or via the Agri-Tools menu on the department’s website elsenburg.com.

Source: Government of South Africa

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Government Communications hosts webinar on involvement of children in climate change action, 18 Nov

The Government Communication and Information System (GCIS) and Agape Youth Movement will host a webinar on children’s involvement on climate change action.

The webinar seeks to achieve the following objectives:

  • To showcase programmes that activate children’s involvement and voice in climate change action
  • Encourage behavioral change for communities to participate in the mitigation of effects of climate change and disaster risk reduction
  • Public education on measures to reduce the impact of climate change and preserve the environment

Source: Government of South Africa

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Planned water supply disruptions for Table View, Bellville South and surrounding areas

The City’s Water and Sanitation Directorate will be doing planned work in the identified areas which will result in water supply disruptions. The City sincerely regrets any inconvenience caused, but it is imperative that it maintains its water supply infrastructure to benefit its consumers. Residents in the affected areas below are encouraged to take note of the work that will be taking place in their areas.

What residents need to know about larger-scale planned water supply disruptions:

Careful consideration has been given to the planning of this work to ensure it is being done at a time that is least disruptive to the water supply.

All sites where water and sanitation repairs and upgrades are conducted are deemed to be construction sites and, as such are off-limits to members of the public.

Sometimes the maintenance work can be more complex than anticipated, resulting in it taking longer.

For a short period, after the supply has been restored, the water may be discoloured or look milky. This is because of trapped air in the pipes. If left to stand in a glass, the appearance will become clear, like normal.

For updates on the maintenance work (and the location of tankers where applicable), follow  @CityofCTAlerts which is a City of Cape Town Twitter account.

How residents are advised to prepare for planned water supply disruptions:

Store enough water in clean sealed containers that will last for your use during this period.

Keep your taps closed to prevent any water loss and/or damage when the water supply is restored.

Zero-Pressure Tests and Step Tests

• Table View, Flamingo Vlei and Bloubergstrand

The City’s Water and Sanitation Directorate will conduct zero pressure tests on the main water supply to the Table View, Flamingo Vlei and Bloubergstrand areas. This work will result in the disruption of the water supply in these areas on Wednesday, 16 November 2022, from 21:00 overnight until 04:00 on Thursday, 17 November 2022.

• Bellville South, Beroma, Glenhaven, Labience and Kasselsvlei

The City’s Water and Sanitation Directorate will conduct zero pressure tests on the main water supply to the Bellville South, Beroma, Glenhaven, Labience and Kasselsvlei areas. This work will result in the disruption of the water supply in these areas on Thursday, 17 November 2022, from 21:00 overnight until 04:00 on Friday, 18 November 2022.

Zero-pressure testing and step testing are part of the installation process for pressure management technology. Tests are done in advance to see if any unmapped inflows need to be considered before installing smart pressure-reducing valves.

In these affected areas, some residents may experience low water pressure, and some may have no water coming out of their taps for some time during this overnight testing period. It is impossible to predict which areas or streets will experience disruptions.

Residents are kindly advised to store water in clean, sealed containers in advance for use during this period and to ensure that their taps are closed to avoid water loss and/or damage when the supply is restored.

This work forms part of the City’s Water Demand Management Strategy. Managing water pressure more effectively reduces the possibility of pipe bursts and water wastage.

The City sincerely regrets any inconvenience caused.

Source: City Of Cape Town

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City reminds of planned required power supply interruption in Mowbray, Rondebosch

The City Electricity Generation and Distribution Department reminds residents in parts of Mowbray and Rondebosch that a planned necessary electricity interruption will be carried out on Saturday, 19 November 2022 from 21:30 to 08:00 the following day, or on Saturday, 10 December 2022 from 21:30 to 08:00, depending on weather conditions, but not on both days.

This is critical maintenance to a major substation in the area, which needs to be carried out.

The interruption will enable City officials to carry out the necessary maintenance work at the Broad Road Main Substation in Mowbray. This substation supplies parts of Mowbray and Rondebosch.

We thank our customers for their understanding. To view the area outage map, visit https://bit.ly/3Ul2n0s

‘The City apologises for any inconvenience caused and thanks residents for their cooperation. City teams remain on the ground on a daily basis in our communities to complete maintenance and upgrades to substations, infrastructure cables and electricity kiosks among others. We encourage residents to visit the City’s website to view the map of the affected streets, or to contact the Electricity Department’s Technical Operations Centre on 0860 103 089 for more information or for enquiries,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Energy, Councillor Beverley van Reenen.

Please note:

The electricity supply could be restored at any time and customers must please treat all electrical installations as live for the full duration of the interruption.

Residents are encouraged to switch off appliances as a precaution and to avoid damage caused by power surges when the power comes back on.

Contact the City’s Call Centre on 0860 103 089 for more information or if you have any enquiries regarding the planned electricity supply interruption.

Source: City Of Cape Town

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#SpringCleanCT campaign sees 179 000 bags of litter removed to date

The #SpringCleanCT campaign continues to make a positive difference in our communities.

Efforts linked to the #SpringCleanCT campaign have resulted in 178 987 bags of general litter and 1755 bags of recycling being removed to date.

As part of the campaign, the City has launched a 24-hour toll-free number to report tip-offs about illegal dumping activity. Those convicted of illegal dumping could be fined up to R5 000, have their vehicle impounded, or face a two-year prison sentence. In addition, for every report that leads to a fine and conviction, the City is offering a reward from R1000 up to R5000, depending on the offence.

To date, 2 049 by-law contravention notices have also been issued as part of campaign efforts.

If residents would like to get involved, they are encouraged to arrange a clean-up or sponsor a community clean-up. Be sure to share your efforts on social media with the hashtag #SpringCleanCT so more people are hopefully inspired to take action.

Feel free to include us on:

Twitter: @CityofCT, @Geordinhl, and @GrantTwigg

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

Furthermore, residents are encouraged to report illegal dumping tip-offs to our 24-hour toll-free number on 0800 110077

‘Efforts linked to this campaign are making a significant difference but the dumping problem in our City needs ongoing efforts to address effectively. Hopefully, many more communities will come together to participate before or during the holiday period,’ said Alderman Grant Twigg, Mayoral Committee Member for Urban Waste Management.

Source: City Of Cape Town

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Community-based vendors encouraged to register as City suppliers

The City encourages residents and groups within communities to register as community-based vendors (CBV) to provide it with goods and services valued below R30 000. The City is committed to providing opportunities to community-based entrepreneurs and small businesses.

‘Smaller enterprises, youth, women and individual-owned entities are encouraged to register as community-based vendors (CBV) to access opportunities to provide the City with goods and services valued below R30 000. A CBV refers to a supplier of goods, services and/or construction works who resides and operates in a specific area or community. These vendors, or micro-enterprises, need to meet the criteria for CBV and must be registered on the City’s vendor database and at the Subcouncil within which they reside.

‘Currently, suppliers are provided with on-boarding registration assistance at the Cape Town Civic Centre’s supplier registration office. Vendors may also make use of their local Subcouncil office for assistance with registration as well as any other information relating to the community-based vendor process. With regard to insurance requirements, the City has taken out public liability insurance for claims up to R10 million for any incidents that may occur during the execution of work by a community-based vendor.

‘Since the 2019/20 financial year, an average of 500 purchase orders to the value of approximately R5 million per year have been issued through Supply Chain Management’s community-based supplier programme for exempted micro-enterprises.

‘Furthermore, as of the end of September 2022, a total of 1 308 community-based suppliers, representing an increase of 20% as compared to September 2021, have been registered on the City’s database. This is indicative of a steady increase in opportunities and support available to community-based suppliers. To further promote opportunities for small businesses, the City has issued 20 549 purchase orders for the 2021/22 financial year. Additionally, approximately 29% of purchase orders were issued to youth- and women-owned enterprises.

‘The City is committed to working with residents and groups within communities to find sustainable ways of meeting their social, economic and material needs, as well as improving the quality of their lives. We encourage them to register in order to access the opportunities that are available,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Finance, Councillor Siseko Mbandezi.

The City strives to promote opportunities and inclusivity for small businesses in its procurement processes. We encourage firms to actively check the City’s website for RFQ and tender adverts on our Procurement portal at http://web1.capetown.gov.za/web1/procurementportal and to register as a supplier.

The City has zero tolerance for fraud and corruption. Suppliers are encouraged to report any irregular conduct:

• City’s Fraud Hotline: 0800 32 31 30

• Supply Chain Management Department: scm.enquiries@capetown.gov.za

Source: City Of Cape Town

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Three suspects to appear in court for attempted murder

On Monday 14 November 2022 Hawks members from Durban Serious Organised Crime Investigation working together with National Intervention Unit and Durban Metro Police arrested three suspects aged between 18 and 26.  

It is alleged that on Sunday the three suspects assaulted and fired shots towards the victim at the service station in Wentworth. A case of attempted murder and assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm was reported at Wentworth police station. The shooting is suspected to be gang related as a result Hawks members were alerted. During the operation one 9mm pistol with fourteen live rounds of ammunition was found abandoned.   

The three suspects were arrested around Wentworth and are expected to appear in the Durban Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday, 16 November 2022.   

Source: South African Police Service