Witzenberg Local Municipality

Witzenberg Local Municipality Witzenberg Plaaslike Munisipaliteit UMasipala weNgingqi yaseWitzenberg
—  Local municipality  —
Location in the Western Cape
Coordinates (Municipal Offices, Ceres): 33°22′16″S 19°18′16″E
Country	South Africa
Province	Western Cape
District	Cape Winelands
Seat	Ceres
Wards	11
Government
• Type	Municipal council
• Mayor	Stefan Louw (DA)
• Municipal Manager	David Nasson
Area
• Total	2,851 km2 (1,100.8 sq mi)
Population (2007)
• Total	75,148
• Density	26.4/km2 (68.3/sq mi)
• Households	24,410
Population groups
• Coloured	68.45%
• Black African	18.88%
• White	12.66%
• Indian or Asian	0.01%
Languages
• Afrikaans	81.02%
• Xhosa	16.05%
• Sotho	1.58%
• English	1.03%
Time zone	SAST (UTC+2)
Municipal code	WC022
Website	www.witzenberg.gov.za

Witzenberg Municipality is a local municipality located within the Cape Winelands District Municipality, in the Western Cape province of South Africa. As of 2007, it had a population of 75,148.

Witzenberg Municipality is a municipality burgeoning with investment potential and experiencing rapid rural/urban development. Witzenberg’s picturesque landscape consists of Ceres, Wolseley, Prince Alfred’s Hamlet, Tulbagh, Nduli, Bella Vista and Op-die-Berg. Development in these areas can largely be attributed to tourism, fruit orchards, viticulture and an emerging commercial sector. However, rural communities serving agrarian regions are often susceptible to seasonal employment, a skills deficit in the workforce and poverty. These social ills also affect parts of Witzenberg Municipality, but this is regarded as an opportunity for economic growth and social transformation as opposed to a dire consequence. Witzenberg Municipality strives to achieve exceptional service delivery to draw investment to this district and can only achieve maximum efficiency and progress if the public that it serves can enjoy basic living standards and have adequate employment options.

Political Leadership

Mayor Stefan Louw was sworn in as the Mayor of Witzenberg Municipality in May 2011. A husband and a father of three, Mayor Louw is passionate about family values and strongly endorses a lifestyle of balance; supporting religion, the home and the workplace. This keen focus stems from his background and experience working with offenders in Correctional Services. It was in this field that Mayor Louw established his beliefs about offenders having great potential for rehabilitation, active investment in youth development being an important factor in the fight against crime and that all people have inherent value. Mayor Louw joined the political arena in 2005 by becoming a member of the Democratic Alliance and assisted with mobilising voters for by-elections. He then furthered his career by pursuing the role of councillor in 2006. Mayor Louw is now part of a dynamic coalition with various political parties that are unified in motivation and producing effective administration. Mayor Louw is a community leader in Witzenberg. He mentors the youth at each opportunity to steer them towards alternatives to drug abuse, delinquency and apathy. Mayor Louw is also a motivational speaker, advocating morals and ethical behaviour. Mayor Louw is constantly striving to address issues of poverty eradication, the importance of fathers in the family unit, developing solutions geared towards job creation and supporting our rural communities. Mayor Louw has a profound love of nature and he supports growth and development but not at the cost of the environment. Mayor Louw has a deep appreciation for sports and is an avid Springbok supporter.

MAYCO and Councillors (Alphabetical Order)

Position	Surname	Name	Political Party	Seat Type
Deputy Executive Mayor	Adams	Karriem	Independent	Ward 6
Councillor	Badela	Reginald	ANC	Ward 12
Councillor	Du Plessis	Jacobus Johannes	DA	PR 3
Councillor	Du Toit	Magdalena Catharina	ANC	PR 1
Speaker	Godden	Theodore Thomas	COPE	PR 1
Mayco Member	Hanekom	Wouda Janene	DA	Ward 3
Councillor	Heradien	Petrus	DA	Ward 7
Mayco Member	Klaasen	Barnito Charles	DA	PR 2
Councillor	Klazen	Jacques Nico Ernest David	Democratic Christian Party	PR 1
Executive Mayor	Louw	Stefanus	DA	PR 1
Councillor	Mouton	Johnnerey Stephanie	ANC	PR 2
Councillor	Ndwanya	Stanley Msondezi	ANC	PR 4
Councillor	Phungula	Joyce Thembisa	ANC	PR 3
Councillor	Salmon	Lea	ANC	Ward 8
Councillor	Saula	Monwabisi Isaac	ANC	Ward 1
Councillor	Sidego	Elizabeth Mary	DA	Ward 11
Councillor	Simpson	Richard John	ANC	Ward 9
Mayco Member	Smit	Hendrik Johannes	DA	Ward 5
Councillor	Swart	Dirk	DA	Ward 2
Councillor	Thomas	Johannes	National People's Party	PR 1
Councillor	Veschini	John Adrian	Voice of Independent Party (VIP)	PR 1
Mayco Member	Visagie	Joachem Jacobus	DA	Ward 4
Councillor	Waterboer	Piet	DA	Ward 10

Municipal Leadership

Name	Title
David Nasson	Municipal Manager
Raymond Esau	Director: Finance
Cobus Kritzinger	Deputy Director: Finance
Hendrik Kröhn	Director: Technical Services
Monwabisi Mpeluza	Director: Corporate Services
Mzwandile Jacobs	Director: Community Services

Geography

Adjacent municipalities

• Hantam Local Municipality, Namakwa District Municipality, Northern Cape (north)
• Karoo Hoogland Local Municipality, Namakwa District Municipality, Northern Cape (northeast)
• Laingsburg Local Municipality, Central Karoo District Municipality (southeast)
• Breede Valley Local Municipality (south)
• Drakenstein Local Municipality (southwest)
• Bergrivier Local Municipality, West Coast District Municipality (west)
• Cederberg Local Municipality, West Coast District Municipality (northwest)

Cities and towns

• Ceres
• eNduli
• Op-die-Berg
• Prince Alfred Hamlet
• Tulbagh
• Bella Vista
• Wolseley

Achievements

Local Economic Development

Local economic development navigates the cohesion between the public, local business and non-governmental partners towards Witzenberg’s financial independence and national competitiveness. Projects to address social difficulties include the Witzenberg Emerging Forum (WEBF), the Community Work Programme, Contractor Development Programme, the creation of the Witzenberg Local Economic Development Board (WLEDB) and the Prince Alfred’s Hamlet Walkway.

Witzenberg Emerging Business Forum (WEBF)

The WEBF aims to mobilise small businesses, emerging farmers and black economic empowerment sectors of Witzenberg to take advantage of the opportunities arising out of local economic development processes. The WEBF is able to provide these sectors with a ‘voice’ in terms of facilitating an open dialogue between Municipal policies, laws, regulations and practises that affect them, thus creating better relationships with local business sectors. The WEBF also identifies development projects in which emerging businesses and new farmers can participate. The WEBF is a conduit for the Municipality and relevant stakeholders to interact with and ensure that business support services from provincial and national government are channelled equitably to these target groups. The success of the WEBF is attributed to its goal driven focus. It follows a pro-active approach giving strength to local business as a collective, providing activities of relevance and value to its members, assisting with skills development and training for budding entrepreneurs and creating a platform for ethical, transparent and accountable business practice.

Community Work Programme (CWP)

Another programme geared towards skills development is the Community Work Programme (CWP). This initiative offers temporary employment to Witzenberg residents, contributing to their sense of dignity and social inclusion. This form of motivation contributes directly to the eradication of poverty, reduction of unemployment and supplementing household income. CWP has about 370 residents participating in the programme, performing maintenance and cleaning of Municipal resorts, storm water and street cleaning as well as sewage plant work. CWP assists 7 non-profit organisations, promoting volunteerism with activities such as social and home caring, women’s support groups, crèche services , HIV care and nutritional maintenance. Future planning for CWP includes skills training in painting and paving, empowering the youth and existing labour force.

Contractor Development

Contractor development is an important focus area for Witzenberg Municipality. Thorough research is being conducted to identify the capabilities of local contractors and to classify the criterion on which these contractors are unsuccessful in tender applications. Witzenberg plans to create workshops and training plans to create awareness and competition within the local business sphere. Witzenberg Local Economic Development Board (WLEDB) Witzenberg Municipality passionately believes that it should work in tandem and in partnership with the private sector as a developmental partner, development agencies as facilitators and communities as beneficiaries. A pivotal strategy in the execution of Witzenberg’s LED framework is the establishment of a Local Economic Development Board (WLEDB). This non-statutory board will act as the conveyance for implementing tangible outcomes in the form of large-scale, commercially viable LED projects, playing a catalytic role in expanding Witzenberg’s economic base. WLEDB is tasked with developing Witzenberg as a recognised brand, to identify LED projects with predictable success, to create a LED project team to conduct business models, feasibility studies and source funding to support these functions.

Prince Alfred's Hamlet Walkway

Prince Alfred’s Hamlet, located in Witzenberg Municipality, is characterised by poverty, unemployment and fetal alcohol syndrome. Residents are subject to seasonal employment, lasting only five to six months of the year. The National Minister of Rural Development and Land Reform, Gugile Nkwinti, visited this area on 20 August 2010 to assess the Municipality’s progress with poverty eradication. Whilst making door-to-door visits, the Minister identified an open space in the Kliprug area to be upgraded into a pedestrian walkway. According to Ms. Jo-Ann Krieger, Manager: Socio-Economic Development, “The area was densely forested, with a ditch used for illegal dumping. The area was unsafe and there was no lighting.” Upon assessing the needs of this area, Witzenberg Municipality sourced local labour to execute the project and proceeded to design and construct a well-lit walkway, with manicured lawns and flower beds at a cost of R4 million. The walkway provided employment and skills development for the youth, with planning for additional recreational facilities to further improve Prince Alfred’s Hamlet. This project transformed a treacherous alley into an attractive and functional walkway, which has become a source of pride and ownership for the community.

Greenest Municipality Competition

At an award ceremony hosted by the Department of Environmental Affairs and Development Planning (DEADP) on 6 October 2011, Witzenberg Municipality placed third for the Greenest Municipality Competition. Drakenstein Municipality was awarded first place, with George Municipality attaining second place. The Department of Environmental Affairs and Development Planning runs this event annually and the competition provides an excellent opportunity to promote improved service delivery standards in Witzenberg as well as raise awareness within the community to protect and care for the environment. The competition was originally known as the Cleanest Town Competition and it was launched in 2001. After several successful years, the competition was expanded to include additional criteria that go beyond waste management. The criteria upon which municipalities are rated includes:

• Waste management
• Energy efficiency and conservation
• Water management
• Air quality management
• Landscaping, tree planting and beautification
• Leadership, institutional arrangements & public participation

The competition was run across South Africa, with a high level of participation throughout the country. Witzenberg Municipality won an award for water management standards, the third place award in the Western Cape and R 40 000.00 in prize money. The Director: Technical Services, Mr. Hendrik Kröhn, received a special award for his personal contribution towards improving quality standards in Witzenberg.

External links

• Official website
• Witzenberg Local Municipality at Cape Gateway