Ekurhuleni Finance and Strategy MMC Jongizizwe Dlabathi has called on the metro council to put aside political differences and work together to stabilise the metro and improve service delivery.

Presenting the R71 billion budget for the 2026/27 financial year on Thursday at the OR Tambo Government Precinct in Germiston, Dlabathi said the municipality’s financial plan was designed to restore public confidence, rebuild infrastructure and strengthen the city’s internal capacity after years of governance instability.

“What we need in this council is for egos to be suppressed in favour of the well-being of our communities, the communities we so claim to represent. On the 1st of July 2026, residents of Ekurhuleni will be expecting clean running water in their taps. They will be expecting flushing toilets, electricity supply, waste collection, fixing of potholes, and ensuring an environmentally friendly city,” he said.

Despite the tabling of the budget, the

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eThekwini Municipality has earmarked millions of rand for housing developments, road upgrades, bridge construction and water infrastructure projects under its proposed R74.7 billion 2026/27 Budget and Integrated Development Plan (IDP), tabled before traditional leaders on Wednesday.

During an engagement with Amakhosi, the municipality announced that R40 million had been allocated to the Lower Molweni road and bridge construction project in Ward 9, one of the largest infrastructure projects planned for areas under traditional authority.

Other allocations include R6.6 million for the upgrade of two roads in KwaXimba, Ward 1, and R1.7 million for the KwaXimba Phase 2 housing project.

In Ward 2, the KwaNgcolosi Phase 2 housing development, which will provide 600 homes, received R2.6 million, while R4.5 million was allocated for the upgrading of gravel roads to blacktop roads.

The municipality also set aside R1 million and R3 million respectively for two Emalangeni Phase 2 housing

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Over 1000 residents attended eThekwini Municipality’s first regional consultation on its draft 2026/27 budget and development plan on Monday.

The meeting, held at Mpumalanga Stadium, formed part of the metro’s programme to engage communities on development priorities and service delivery planning, the city said.

eThekwini has allocated over R522 million to the Outer West Region, covering Wards 1 to 10, 91 and 103, as part of its R74.7 billion 2026/27 budget process.

“Key projects highlighted for the area include the construction of road infrastructure, housing development, upgrades to wastewater treatment works, and the provision of community facilities such as libraries and sports fields,” the municipality said.

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eThekwini Mayor, Councillor Cyril Xaba, led the engagement. Xaba said interventions aimed at stimulating economic growth in the region included the R15 billion Shongweni Development and the R10

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eThekwini Municipality has started consulting ward councillors on its draft 2026/27 budget and development plan before public hearings later this month.

“These robust engagements with Ward Councillors represent a critical first step in finalising the Draft 2026/27 IDP and Budget, ahead of the upcoming public participation process,” the city said on Wednesday.

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It said councillors at the inaugural session raised concerns, including water challenges, road infrastructure, transit camps, delays in supply-chain processes, and the need to fast-track ward-based projects.

The process is part of a statutory budget cycle set out in the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA) and

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“Of the allocated funding to local government, R86.9 billion is to support the provision of free basic services to 11.2 million households,” he said.

The minister acknowledged that many municipalities remain in financial and operational distress, limiting their ability to deliver essential services effectively.

Audit outcomes show that 63% of municipalities are in financial distress, while the proportion of clean audits remains low. Godongwana described this as an “unacceptable reality”.

“A central challenge with municipalities is that they not only differ in capacity, but also in

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The Gauteng Depart of Health (GDoH) on Wednesday rejected claims that it had failed to spend R1.2 billion of its adjusted budget, saying its latest in-year monitoring for the 2025/26 financial year instead showed it was projecting an overspend.  

The department said its Prescribed PFMA In-Year Monitoring (IYM) reports showed a projected overspend primarily linked to settling outstanding payments for medicines and medical supplies, increased demand for services across facilities, and escalating costs that exceeded the inflation assumptions used in the 2025/26 budget.

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“The Department wishes to place the facts on record to ensure accurate public understanding of the Department’s financial position and operational challenges,” it said.

“It is therefore misleading to conflate the Department’s current-year spending pressures with the underspending recorded in the 2024/25 financial year.”

The department said it had

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Gauteng is ramping up upgrades at one of South Africa’s biggest public hospitals. Health and Wellness MEC Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko said on Tuesday that new equipment –  rolled out that day – would cut waiting times and reduce referrals as the province leans harder on private partners, given tighter budgets.

Speaking at Dr George Mukhari Academic Hospital in Ga-Rankuwa, north of Pretoria, Nkomo-Ralehoko said the investment was part of a push to modernise Gauteng’s healthcare system, as promised by Premier Panyaza Lesufi in his state of the province address.

“The new state-of-the-art equipment we unveil today is more than just machines; they are lifelines for our people. They will allow us to perform critical life-saving procedures locally, reducing referrals, saving time and offering care when and where it is needed most,” she said.

The MEC did not provide cost details, but said the upgrades were part of

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The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Tshwane has warned that the metro could face an “inevitable” cash-flow crisis within the next 12 months unless urgent steps are taken to stabilise its finances.

The party’s leadership in the capital, led by its mayoral candidate for next year’s local government elections, Cilliers Brink, proposed measures it said would prevent the city from sliding into a position where it was forced to draw on pension funds to cover operating costs.

“The expenses incurred by the city is much higher than the realistic collection of income, and this is a result of bad policy and bad government. Tshwane has been in an acute financial crisis since the city has been placed illegally under administration for a prolonged period of time in 2020,” said DA Tshwane spokesperson for utilities, Jacqui Uys.

“The city now faces a deficit of between R4 billion and R6

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eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality’s budget has been trimmed to R70.9 billion, down from the initially proposed R71.3 billion, following tariff adjustments aimed at aligning spending with updated revenue forecasts.

eThekwini mayor Cyril Xaba spoke about the revision during a post-budget business breakfast in Durban on Wednesday, emphasizing that the adjustment, though modest, reflects the municipality’s commitment to fiscal discipline without compromising core service delivery in infrastructure, healthcare, and education.

“We fully appreciate the challenges our people face as a result of the difficult economic climate, we were able to make changes to the final budget and reduced our tariffs,” said Xaba.

Following negotiations with Umgeni-uThukela Water—which reduced its tariff increase from 13% to 11%—eThekwini has lowered its proposed water and sanitation tariff hikes.

The domestic water tariff increase was reduced from 15% to 13%, and the business water tariff from 16% to 14%. Sanitation tariffs were also

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This budget is the first to be passed by the ANC-led multiparty coalition since its formation in October last year.

ActionSA President Herman Mashaba welcomed the adoption of the budget, adding that it is the first time ActionSA Executive Mayor, Dr Nasiphi Moya, and her coalition government will deliver services from a budget they crafted themselves.

According to Mashaba, the team, led by Moya and ANC Deputy Executive Mayor and MMC for Finance, Eugene Modise, has delivered the first fully funded budget in years.

He said this was particularly significant given that, less than a year ago, Tshwane was effectively bankrupt, burdened by R7 billion in Eskom debt and repeated qualified audit outcomes.

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