Mashatile's eThekwini team claims R32 billion in projects, but wants troops in PINK areas

Deputy President Paul Mashatile has commended the Presidential eThekwini Working Group (PeWG) for what the government describes as significant progress in service delivery and economic development, and the group has used the same meeting to ask for soldiers in four Durban townships where it says safety remains a problem.

Mashatile met the working group on Friday at the eThekwini City Hall in KwaZulu-Natal, where it presented an update on progress, challenges and proposed interventions for phase two. The Presidency’s account of that meeting was published by SAnews (South African Government News Agency), and this report is based on that summary rather than on the co-chairs’ report itself.

The PeWG was set up in 2024 after engagements between President Cyril Ramaphosa and the Durban Chamber of Commerce and Industry over the metro’s most pressing problems, including water supply interruptions, ageing infrastructure, declining tourism, crime and port inefficiencies.

According to the government’s account, the latest PeWG Co-Chairs Report records that municipal financial performance has stabilised and that governance measures have contributed to improved compliance and accountability. It also cites progress in reducing water losses, strengthening tourism promotion and advancing catalytic investment projects valued at more than R32 billion. The document does not break that figure down by project, funder or completion date.

On safety, the meeting noted what it called the ongoing concerns that have plagued the Phoenix, Inanda, Ntuzuma and Kwa-Mashu (PINK) areas. The group welcomed Ramaphosa’s intervention to deploy the South African National Defence Force in response to recent unrest in the province, and called for a similar intervention in the PINK areas. The summary does not say what the PINK deployment would involve, how many members would be sent, or whether the request has been accepted.

Mashatile said a safe, vibrant, well-managed, clean and hospitable city centre would send a strong message that eThekwini is open for business and committed to inclusive growth that would benefit all its residents.

“[We must build] on this momentum, strengthen collaboration and accelerate implementation so that the Presidential eThekwini Working Group leaves a legacy of investment, growth, job creation and improved quality of life for the people of eThekwini and the province at large,” he said.

The working group’s work runs alongside the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Service Delivery, which Mashatile chairs. PeWG Co-Chair Mike Mabuyakhulu said the collaborative work of all spheres of government and social partners is starting to yield tangible results.

“We are seeing meaningful progress in key areas such as infrastructure development, transport, investment attraction and service delivery,” Mabuyakhulu said. “While challenges remain, our focus is on accelerating delivery and ensuring that residents and businesses experience the benefits of these interventions.”

The next phase, per the summary, will focus on securing funding for the uMlazi Canal upgrade, accelerating rail recovery initiatives, reducing non-revenue water losses and strengthening coordination to support economic growth and improved service delivery. The document gives no timelines or cost estimates for those priorities.

Mabuyakhulu said the city belongs to its people and stakeholders, and that continuous updates to them sit at the heart of what he called the social contract. He said the working group’s communication and marketing workstream will soon roll out stakeholder accountability sessions to keep residents informed of the progress being registered.

The source document is a government news agency summary of the meeting and the co-chairs’ report, not the report itself. SAnews can be read at https://www.sanews.gov.za/south-africa/presidential-ethekwini-working-group-marks-significant-progress-service-delivery.