18 August 2008

Almost 70% of businesses polled in the City of Cape Town’s service delivery survey rated the municipality’s service as positive.

The aim of the survey was to set a baseline to measure service delivery and to plan future budget priorities.

Some 3 000 residents and 500 businesses were interviewed between October 2007 and February 2008.

The Khayelitsha district scored the highest ‘positive overall reaction’, while Klipfontein and the western suburbs scored ‘above average’. The eastern and northern areas registered an ‘average’ response, while the southern suburbs and Mitchells Plain registered a ‘below average’ response and Tygerberg residents were ‘the least satisfied’ of all.

Asked whether the municipality’s performance had improved from mid 2005 to mid 2007, 52% of the respondents indicated that it had stayed the same, 24% noted an improvement, and 20% said it had worsened.

Water, electricity, sewerage, refuse removal and stormwater management rated the highest in terms of satisfaction of essential services. Libraries, community centres and civic halls ranked the best among the community services delivered.

The survey indicates that housing and healthcare are perceived as critical areas of under-delivery, although these, like transport and community safety, are not the sole responsibility of local government.

Businesses rated the City of Cape Town high in comparison to other state institutions. They also rated the same services positive as indicated by households.

The City is tendering for a second survey that will be used to assess progress in service delivery levels since the first survey. In particular, the City intends to track progress following the awarding of new contracts for maintenance of public spaces, and an increase to R1.2 bn on the annual budget for repairs and maintenance in general.

Source: CapeTown.gov.za