KwaZulu-Natal Premier Nomusa Dube-Ncube has revealed that government departments and public entities in the province will each chip in R10-million to fight crime.

She said the KwaZulu-Natal executive council had approved the contributions to support an "integrated approach to fighting crime through collaborative tactics".

"We said in our state of the province address that fighting crime is our key priority. It requires a collaborative effort.

"It is for this reason that the executive council approved the contribution of R10-million from each of the provincial departments and public entities towards the fight against crime."

Dube-Ncube was speaking at a multistakeholder engagement on Tuesday. The meeting was attended by representatives of senior police leadership, private security firms, community policing forums, traditional leaders, NGOs and other relevant stakeholders.

"We are really disturbed by the levels of violent crime in our province. In particular, the assassinations of public representatives convey a message [that] criminals are running amok. As such, we are taking decisive action against crime in KwaZulu-Natal," she said.

The premier also highlighted several key areas of collaboration, including leveraging expertise and innovation from the private sector and using technology such as CCTV and drones to monitor activity on highways, national roads and CBDs.

She also committed to "strengthening political commitment to make a tangible difference in altering the province's crime landscape".

Transport, Community Safety and Liaison MEC Sipho Hlomuka said: "We all have a responsibility to fight crime to create safer communities. 

"Civil society, business, academia and private security all have a crucial role to play in fighting crime. This consultative gathering provided the strategic building blocks towards a new united front against crime in the province."