Tau emphasises role of local governments

Joburg mayor Parks Tau. Photo: Antoine de Ras

Joburg mayor Parks Tau. Photo: Antoine de Ras

Published Nov 30, 2015

Share

Johannesburg - Joburg, with its population of nearly 5 million people, is the major contributor to the economy of South Africa.

So said Joburg mayor Parks Tau when he welcomed thousands of local government delegates from all African countries during the summit on Sunday.

The conference, being held under the theme “Shaping the future of Africa with the people: Africa’s local government contribution to the Africa Vision 2063”, ends on Thursday.

In his address, Tau said local governments were the best instruments to translate any government actions, such as the provision of better services, into reality.

To emphasise his point about Joburg, he compared its contribution to the economies of Africa’s biggest cities.

“Johannesburg has about 4.9 million people, which is just under 10 percent of the country’s population, but contributes 14 percent to South Africa’s GDP (gross domestic product).

“Lagos, which has a population of over 21million - 8.23 percent of the country’s population - contributes 5.76 percent of Nigeria’s GDP.

“Nairobi has a population of 3.363 million - 13.67 percent of the total population of Kenya - and contributes 5.83 percent of the country’s GDP.”

Tau said 14 percent of Joburg citizens were from sub-Saharan Africa, emphasising that local government was the indispensable vehicle through which our socio-political and developmental agendas are driven.

He said the Africities summit must enhance their roles by strengthening the capacity of organised local government to formulate developmental policy for Africa.

“African local government has an immense contribution to make in the realisation of this vision as espoused in the African Charter on the values and principles of decentralisation, local governance and local development as adopted by the African Union.”

The Star

Related Topics: