Pretoria - The announcement by the Municipal Demarcation Board (MBD) on the redetermination of various municipal boundaries in Gauteng has been welcomed by Gauteng Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs MEC Ntombi Mekgwe.
“We welcome this great decision that will ultimately consolidate municipalities and usher Gauteng province towards the single-tier form of government,” the MEC said in a statement on Thursday.
The effects of the boundary redeterminations in Gauteng will result in the reduction of four municipalities from 12 municipalities, and a new municipal landscape will take place after the next municipal elections in 2016.
In Gauteng province, there were three cases and all were confirmed.
These include the confirmation of the redetermined municipal boundaries of Randfontein and Westonaria Local Municipalities by amalgamating them into a single category B local municipality.
The next case was that of the redetermination of municipal boundaries of Emfuleni and Midvaal Local Municipalities and Sedibeng District Municipality, amalgamating them into a single category A Metropolitan Municipality.
With the formation of the metropolitan municipality, the Sedibeng District Municipality will fall away. In addition, Lesedi Local Municipality will be excluded from Sedibeng District Municipality and be included into Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality.
In the last case, the redetermination of the municipal boundaries of Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality and City of Johannesburg Metropolitan by excluding a portion of the farm Elandsfontein portion of East Gate Shopping Centre from the municipal area of Johannesburg to be included into the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality.
Mekgwe added that the re-demarcation will realise the Gauteng Global City perspective of seamless service delivery. – SAnews.gov.za
