The City of Tshwane’s Department of Corporate and Shared Services has claimed that it will run a clean and efficient office by focusing on doing more with less.

This statement follows from its commitment to clean governance espoused by Mayor Cilliers Brink during the State of the Capital Address, in May.

The department shared that a reduction of costs on leased buildings had led to the City saving over R120-million. Further, R25-million had been provisioned for the refurbishment of the City’s Midtown Building, cited as a multi-year project aimed at reducing annual costs on rented buildings.

The City also expects to save R275-million, previously spent each year on leased vehicles. In an effort to streamline its fleet management, it has budgeted R50-million for the purchasing of new vehicles. The City has also budgeted R100-million for information technology systems, outlining the City’s imperative to make it more efficient and accessible to residents.

“While we acknowledge that there are increases in the cost of living, the harsh reality we have to face as a City is to either be financially prudent or risk total financial collapse. It is on this note that the City took a decision not to budget for salary increases for both employees and councillors in the current financial year,” said Corporate and Shared Services MMC Kingsley Wakelin.

The City has asserted that it will begin a full review of its organisational structure, ensuring that specific roles are clearly aligned to service delivery priorities.

“The roll-out of the updated SAP platform will bring improvements to e-Tshwane’s capabilities and that allows improved services for residents, while strengthening revenue collection and compliance with National Treasury requirements so that we can achieve a clean audit,” he said.

This department will spend over R34-million on internal and forensic auditing to mitigate corruption.