The West Rand district is one of the most economically depressed regions in the province.
“Constant under-funding by the Gauteng Provincial Government has seen this district forced into a downward spiral of under-development, leaving thousands of residents hopeless and without the opportunity to improve their quality of life,” said Alan Fuchs, DA Member of Parliament and the Constituency Head for Mogale City.
The West Rand consists of three local municipalities, Mogale City, Merafong City and Rand West City (Randfontein and Westonaria). The West Rand Region covers 4 095 square kilometres and has a population of approximately 850 000.
“The district has the lowest population of the regions in Gauteng and also has the lowest population growth rate. This has been brought about by the deepening economic crisis that has come about due to difficulties in the mining industry and resultant de-industrialisation. As a result, people have moved to areas with additional opportunities for employment.”
In the context of economic development, the West Rand struggles. While it makes up over six per cent of Gauteng’s population, and it contributes only 4,5 per cent to the province’s gross domestic product (GDP). This is lower than any of the Metros and other districts in Gauteng.
Fuchs said that in 2014, the West Rand had the second highest share of people living under the upper poverty line of R577 per month, second only to Sedibeng. It also had the second highest unemployment rate after Sedibeng.
The Human Development Index (HDI) is a measure of development that takes into account a population’s life expectancy, education and standard of living. The West Rand and Sedibeng were the 2 worst performing districts in Gauteng in terms of the HDI in 2014.
In terms of access to services, the West Rand was the only region in Gauteng that had a smaller proportion of its residents have access to both water and electricity in 2014 than in 2010.
Furthermore, Fuchs stated that a 2013 report indicated that there are only 12 industrial nodes located within the West Rand. These industrial nodes represent fully developed nodes, nodes in need of maintenance and improvement, nodes and corridors that are underdeveloped and nodes that have the potential for expansion. Unless a large number of new nodes are developed, the status quo will remain.
“An evaluation of the capital budgets allocated to the different regions in Gauteng shows that the West has been allocated the lowest capital budget in 2016, as well as the lowest budget over the 3 years between 2016 and 2018. In 2016, the allocated budget for the West, excluding cross-border projects, was 33 per cent of the budget allocated to the central corridor (Johannesburg), 42 per cent of the budget allocated to the northern corridor (Tshwane), 59 per cent of the budget allocated to the eastern corridor (Ekurhuleni) and 74 per cent of the budget allocated to the southern corridor (Sedibeng, Lesedi, Midvaal).
“Minor tinkering with the economic dynamics of the West Rand will not have the required impact needed to drastically turn this dire situation around. What it will take is for provincial government to have a laser-like focus on ploughing much larger budgets into developing the West. This in turn will leverage private investment.
“The DA will continue to push for a greater share of the provincial budget to be allocated to the West Rand and to ensure that this funding is invested in projects that will stimulate the kind of economic growth that is so desperately needed in the region.”
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