The Cape Town council has slashed hundreds of millions of rands from its capital budget — effectively halting scores of its own township-based infrastructure projects — while redirecting about R246-million to the flagship N2 Gateway Project, the government’s pilot initiative to eradicate shacks.
The city had spent 14% of its capital budget halfway through the municipal financial year ending June 30, according to the mid-year financial budget review. Much of the unspent monies meant for informal settlement and hostel upgrades, several new formal housing developments and township cemetery improvements have been redirected into the N2 project. The presidential Urban Renewal Programme projects in Mitchells Plain and Khayelitsha were not affected by the budget adjustments, which reduced capital expenditure from R1,65-billion to R1,44-billion.
Cape Town’s chief financial officer Ike Nxedlana explained that it was decided to reallocate the unspent monies “in a clear message” to project managers to spend their funds. “[This money] is going to be used for high-priority projects. The most important among them is the upgrading of the N2 Gateway Project area.”
In a separate move, the council on Monday requested almost R14-million from provincial authorities for consultancy and urban-design layouts for the project. Already approved is R2,39-million for, among other purposes, enumeration of residents (a R1,2-million outsourced project) and the acquisition of a global positioning system worth R501 000.
Details of financing of the N2 project are scarce. Mike Marsden, the city’s executive director for development and infrastructure, said the council was finalising its business plans and “a financial package” for the N2 project would shortly be made public.
The informal settlement has been identified as the first phase of the R1-billion joint initiative by all three spheres of government driven by Cape Town council. The N2 Gateway Project spearheads 17 others across South Africa under the new human settlement plan announced by Minister of Housing Lindiwe Sisulu in September 2004. A planned 22 000 new homes are to be completed by the end of June.
About 12 000 families will be relocated as part of the development.