Tshwane Finance MMC Eugene Modise has expressed confidence that the municipality is making strides towards financial recovery in keeping with the new administration’s 100-day target of collecting at least R4 billion in revenue per month by the end of January 2025.

Modise said the City collected R3,68bn in revenue in October, surpassing medium term financial target by 4% and exceeding the average collection over the previous three months of R3,5 bn.

This positive result, he said, reflected the impact of a range of interventions aimed at strengthening revenue collection.

He said that during October 2024, the City logged 116 000 outbound collection calls, which included 94 000 residential and 21 800 business accounts.

In addition, he said, 48 526 final notices of demand were issued, contributing to the improved revenue flow.

Modise, who is also a deputy mayor, said: “These efforts, along with other strategic measures, signal tangible progress towards our goal of tabling a funded budget for the 2025/26 financial year – a key priority in our 100-day action plan announced by the mayoral committee last week.”

He said increasing revenue collection is crucial for the City’s ability to meet its financial obligations, particularly the significant debt to Eskom standing at R6,76bn.

“This debt escalated from approximately R1bn in March 2022 to over R7bn by the end of September this year. The City is actively engaging with the Minister of Electricity and Energy, as well as with Eskom, to reach an agreement on a structured payment plan for this historic debt,”he said.

According to him, efforts to improve revenue collection will continue to intensify in the coming weeks.

“Our debt management initiatives are focusing on high-value accounts, including 1 354 accounts with outstanding balances of over R1million each, collectively amounting to R4,6bn,”he said.

The City, he said, is implementing several targeted measures to address non-payment and to promote a culture of payment.

The measures included continued auditing of accounts in industrial areas to ensure compliance with tariff classifications, with penalties imposed for non-compliance.

The City is also addressing illegal connections, especially among informal car wash businesses as part of a proactive approach to revenue protection.

Modise said the municipality is also enhancing the accuracy of meter readings by reducing the 41% estimated readings rate.

“Our target is to achieve 95% actual readings, ensuring that residents are billed for their actual consumption,” he said

Pretoria News

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