Participants in the Mdantsane Greening Project have been recognised for their work and have received certificates for the part they have played in keeping the township's environment healthy for its citizens.

Buffalo City and the Nelson Mandela Metro have been ranked the top municipalities in the province following an analysis by the national department of provincial and local government.

"Take pride, take action" is the theme for this year's annual clean-up campaign in the city. The campaign seeks to reach disadvantaged communities.

Improving Mdantsane's central business district is crucial to the success of the township's urban renewal programme.

The Buffalo City Municipality wants to speed up the R250-million Duncan Village Redevelopment Initiative (DVR).

Discipline will be the new buzzword in the council that will be serving Buffalo City for the next five years. These are the tough-talking words of the council's speaker, Luleka Simon, when asked about the seriousness of being elected to serve the people.

Buffalo City is well-positioned to contribute to the country's target of a 6 percent annual growth rate, a South African Cities Network symposium is told.

Buffalo City is hosting an SACN symposium on boosting local economic development and finding ways to achieve a six percent annual growth rate.

History was made in Buffalo City when the City elected its first female mayor on Friday, 17 March. Ntombentle Peter was voted in as executive mayor at the inaugural meeting of the new council following the municipal elections.

An Mdantsane high school in Buffalo City is to teach youngsters practical skills like fishing and farming, in an effort to encourage job creation over the long-term.

A violence prevention programme will soon have an impact on Mdantsane township. Local violence prevention experts have worked closely with Buffalo City's Mdantsane's Urban Renewal Programme unit.

The newly opened R47-million regional waste disposal site in Berlin should play a large role in developing the economy of Buffalo City.

Accelerated growth and attracting more investors are just some of the areas of focus for the provincial government and its partners in 2006.

Construction on the first phase of the R45-million Heroes Park memorial complex on the East London Esplanade is expected to be complete by the end of the month.

The Buffalo City Development Agency has a R300-million plan to develop the East London beachfront in a bid to attract investors and make it a healthier place for the city's residents.

Expect a knock on your door from your city leaders as Buffalo City Municipality visits residents in its 45 wards to educate them about local government and service delivery.

Top Buffalo City officials and national government staff have held a workshop to discuss ways to make Project Consolidate work in the city.

Despite being one of the poorer provinces in the country, the Eastern Cape has the potential to attract big investors.

One of the main focuses of the newly formed Buffalo City Development Agency is to help the municipality to alleviate poverty in the region by creating employment opportunities.

The East London Industrial Development Zone (IDZ) announced its first three investors, who will invest a total of R188 million into the IDZ plant on the West Bank, on Friday, 17 June.

Poverty alleviation, HIV/Aids and the creation of partnerships were some of the hot topics being discussed at the Trade and Investment Conference of the New Partnership for Africa's Development (Nepad) in East London.

In a quest to become more costumer-focused, Buffalo City this week launched its Customer Care Survey in a drive to be result oriented in the delivery of services. A total of 2 000 households will be canvassed on municipal services.

Buffalo City plans to take the lead in implementing the new national Human Settlement Plan, creating environments that include amenities such as schools and clinics as well as houses.

A recent credit rating report on Buffalo City's finances has confirmed that the City has a strong capacity to repay long-term liabilities and short-term debt.

More families have less money: the number of households with no income has doubled since 1996 as unemployment has risen. For the city to meet its targets, this has to be addressed, says the IDP general manager.

In an attempt to recover R400-million in unpaid rates and services owed to it by residents, Buffalo City Municipality has begun a programme of attaching houses of defaulters.

Tourist areas along East London's beachfront are set to flourish in the wake of government approval of Buffalo City's Urban Development Zone, with investors looking at significant tax benefits.

Buffalo City launched a 10-year tourism master plan at the East London City Hall on Monday, 27 September as part of an initiative to attract visitors to the region.

Local government authorities need to play a bigger role in the eradication of crime in our cities, said Jacobus Smit, president of the Institute for Municipal Law Enforcement of Southern Africa (IMLE) at a two-day conference at the East London City Hall on Thursday, August 26.

Delivering his State of the City address, Buffalo City Executive Mayor Sindisile Maclean presented the city' third "pro-poor" budget with spending up to R1,6bn from last year's R1.4billion for the municipality's 2004/2005 budget.

Buffalo City's special-programmes unit has launched a special forum - the aim of which is to boost the role of the municipality's women employees - at a function in East London.

Buffalo City's Junior Council plans to become more visible this year as it takes on projects to improve the lot of the city's young residents.

Buffalo City Municipality has initiated a project to improve the lives of 1,200 families living in the Nompumelelo informal settlement in Beacon Bay, East London, by building houses and upgrading the infrastructure.

Buffalo City municipality was declared the best administered council in the country for its sound financial viability, quality service delivery, job creation, focused local economic development and good governance when it won the Vuna Award.

Buffalo City's Chief Financial Officer Brian Shepherd has issued an ultimatum to municipal account holders in arrears: pay now if you don't want to have a black Christmas.

Buffalo City Municipality introduced the R1-billion Mdantsane Urban Renewal Programme, aimed at changing the face of the impoverished township, during an official ceremony at the Mdantsane Indoor Sports Centre last week.

Winning the Vuna award for being the best municipality in the Eastern Cape will boost Buffalo City's bid to become a metro, says Executive Mayor Sindisile Maclean.

A R20-million scheme aimed at giving new entrepreneurs in the contracting industry easier access to finance was launched in East London last week. The scheme, set up by the Department of Roads and Public Works and the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC), will be used to offer financial support and business expertise to emerging contractors in the Eastern Cape

An interim marketing forum aimed at marketing Buffalo City as a preferred business and leisure destination has been established.