Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi has declared that the province is ready to host the G20 Leaders’ Summit on November 22 and 23.
This follows President Cyril Ramaphosa’s earlier visit to Johannesburg, during which he expressed displeasure with the city’s condition as preparations for the major event continued.
Ramaphosa had raised concerns about deteriorating infrastructure. Also potholes, power cuts and uncollected waste, and sewer spills, among other issues. However, Lesufi said those challenges had since been addressed.
City’s challenges addressed
“Today we are proud to report back to the president that we have resolved all these matters. Today we are proud to report to all South Africans that we are ready to host this event without all those issues that the president has raised. And we take our citizens in confidence in explaining the work that we have done in the last four months,” said Lesufi.
He said municipalities were looking clean. And major centres were prepared to welcome visitors. He added that infrastructure improvements, such as fixing traffic lights and repairing potholes, would continue to benefit residents long after the summit.
“We have established a dedicated integrated traffic management plan involving all metro police units and traffic services. All this is meant to ensure that we don’t have long traffic jams or create traffic blockages enroute to the summit. Also to strategic areas within our province,” said Lesufi.
Road closures have been communicated with the taxi industry. But final diversion roads are still pending as government finalises road closure plans.
Water supply
Lesufi said Johannesburg has promised uninterrupted water supply during and beyond the summit. This despite parts of Gauteng not having water. However, he promised that the areas would have running water before the summit.
He said the Gauteng disaster management centre is fully activated to ensure a secure summit. A multi-agency command centre is also established to facilitate real time coordination and rapid response.
“Some of our disaster management plans unfortunately can’t be made public for obvious reasons,” said Lesufi.
Lesufi said preparations had gone beyond the event itself. And this is helping the province to address the 13 challenges that had been identified earlier. He added that the provincial government wanted to sustain this level of service delivery beyond the G20.
He also highlighted the historic nature of the summit, noting that it would be the first of its kind to be hosted on African soil.
Pivotal moment for Johannesburg
“This landmark moment will place our province in the global spotlight, accelerate our growth trajectory and see Johannesburg adding its name and joining the prestigious list of G20 host cities,” said Lesufi.
He said leaders from local and provincial governments had been meeting weekly to monitor progress. They had also inspected ports of entry, including airports, to ensure safety and readiness for international visitors. This, he said, had been a model of collaboration that should continue beyond the event.
Beyond G20
“We planned together, we strategised together, we pulled our resources together. We implemented a better Gauteng together. And we are proud of the feedback that we have been receiving. Obviously disappointed that majority of businesses and citizens believe this improvement is only meant for G20 and it will collapse immediately after G20.
“We want to assure citizens, we want to assure business. We want to assure organised labour and the taxi industry. This commitment of collaboration, of working together, will go beyond the G20. We tend to bid for more international events, especially within the sporting world. As well as the entertainment sector,” said Lesufi.
