The Gauteng Provincial Government will be spending R427 million rand on the fight against substance abuse.
This was announced by Premier Panyaza Lesufi on Thursday during his State of the Province Address.
Lesufi’s address was delivered at the Change Bible Church in Katlego g on the East Rand.
According to Lesufi, the said millions will be spent in the current financial year while over a billion rand will be spent on the selfsame issue of fighting substance abuse during the Mid Term Development Plan (MTDP) period.
This initiative against drug abuse will see the establishment of calls and walk-in centres in each township across the province.
“We want to make sure that no person with substance use disorder is turned away, when seeking help,” said Lesufi without mentioning how the Gauteng Provincial Provincial government would tackle the issue of those who sell drugs like nyaope.
Lesufi also pointed out that he is determined to consolidate the provincial developmental vision to secure the future of its residents and generations to come.
He said his administration is committed to turning Gauteng into a province characterised by ethical leadership, transparency and accountability.
“On May 29, 2024, we held free and fair national and provincial elections whose outcomes have shaped the political direction of the electorate by constituting the government of provincial unity after a long consultative process,” he said.
“The key objectives of the province’s Mid Term Development Plan are on the following strategic priorities which are aligned with President Cyril Ramaphosa’s Opening of the Parliament Address, namely inclusive growth, improved living conditions and enhanced health well-being.
On the issue of public finances Lesufi said the province is anchored on the need to maximise revenue collection and exploring innovative revenue generation strategies.
Turning to Integrated Planning and Cooperative Governance, Lesufi said the provincial government will support municipalities with critical service delivery initiatives and ensure that a functional disaster management response Centre is operational and able to respond to unplanned disastrous occurrences.
To address the current water crisis in the province, Lesufi said the following:
“We are firming up on our strategic water resource protection interventions, we will enhance the implementation of wetland rehabilitation, river health groundwater monitoring, and related interventions,” he said
Lesufi also announced they an inter-governmental relations summit will be held in October this year to deal with crime, energy, hostel redevelopment, special economic zones, CBD revitalisation and water scarcity.
On health issues, the Premier made it known that four hospitals will be built in areas like Daveyton, Diespsloot, Olivenhoutbosch and Orange Farm.
Eradication of hunger is also one of the issues which Lesufi tackled in his speech and to this end, after describing hunger as a silent pandemic he announced that the province’s interventions will include food production value chains, food markets and food parcels, daily cooked meals and community nutrition centres.
“To the people of Gauteng, I would like to say: we have heard you; the message is that the government would talk less and do more,” he said.
Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi state of the province address speech: