Nonhlanhla Sifumba, MMC for The Department of Community Development in the City of Johannesburg, writes the following New Year’s message:

The Department of Community Development in the City of Johannesburg’s hopes for [this] year is, for us to continue delivering service with pride, for all our repairs and maintenance schedules to be up to date, for us to raise the funding required to restore our heritage facilities, especially the Johannesburg Art Gallery (JAG), as well as raising enough money for the carnival and other programmes that contribute to the vibrancy of the City of Joburg.

February was a busy month at the Joburg Theatre as The Color Purple continued to bring theatre revellers in large numbers from all over the globe. The Color Purple was in so much demand that on most nights the cast was performing to a filled capacity theatre.

The Mandela Theatre can accommodate up to 1 000 people, and for the show to achieve full capacity on more than one night was a testimony to the calibre of the show and the sheer talent of the cast. The Color Purple returned to the 1000 seater Mandela Stage at the Joburg Theatre on 7 August 2018 and ran until 2 September.

The extension of library hours at 11 of the City’s regional libraries. Our libraries now operate for an additional 4 hours from 1pm – 5p, on Saturdays. The following libraries have extended hours:

Diepsloot – Region A,

Ivory Park North – Region A,

Randburg – Region B,

Florida – Region C,

Protea North – Region D,

Jabavu – Region D,

Sandton – Region E,

Yeoville – Region F,

Ennerdale Extension 9 – Region G,

Orange Farm – Region G, and

Johannesburg City Library – Region F.

Our lowlights were having to cancel the 2018 Carnival. I wish all the residents a safe and rested holiday period. [Last] year [was] not without its challenges, but we would like to thank our residents for their patience, and for holding us accountable in everything that we have committed to doing. We look forward to a great 2019, with even greater service delivery offerings.