Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi has pledged vast sums of investment to bolster jobs and service delivery in the province
The Premier’s 2026 State of the Province Address on Monday evening was littered with figures, some indicating positive trends and others showing ambition for the future.
Political opponents labelled the speech more of the same, accusing the premier of ignoring the underlying issues that were holding Gauteng back.
Here are a few numbers from Lesufi’s speech as he detailed the state of Gauteng.
Gauteng jobs and crime
StatsSA stated last year that Gauteng had a population of roughly 16 million.
Lesufi boasted that 5.24 million of those were employed and that the province was responsible for roughly 70% of all new jobs added to the economy in the past year.
He said that R27 billion in foreign direct investment had been secured from nations and markets across the globe, leading to strong employment prospects in construction, finance, community and social services.
Last year, the provincial government claimed 392 crime kingpins had been identified, with Lesufi stating on Monday evening that 101 of those had been arrested.
Additionally, 26 criminals were killed while exchanging fire with police, and 11 cash-in-transit kingpins had been arrested.
These numbers translated into a 7.8% decrease in property-related crimes, 11% decrease in murders and an 8% decrease in sexual offences.
Water and housing
Lesufi thanked the private sector for investing over R100 billion to expand the province’s housing stock, stating the government had constructed almost 7 000 housing units and released over 3 600 serviced stands in the current financial year.
The 2026 housing target is 8 644 new homes.
Water supply to the province’s residents is paramount, with Lesufi pledging R760 million in infrastructure investment in Johannesburg alone.
He blamed the recent shortages in Midrand on an explosion at a Rand Water plant, but after having gone “into emergency mode”, authorities stabilised the situation.
The Premier confirmed a new reservoir and tower in Brixton was due to go live this coming weekend, and an emergency boosting pumping station will go live the following week.
“The permanent solution will be realised once the construction of the 5km pipeline is concluded at the end of the year,” Lesufi stated.
He took the opportunity to unveil 500 of a planned 2 500-strong youth workforce that will be deployed to fix broken taps and broken public toilets, as well as paint public spaces.
Investment in Gauteng
Lesufi announced a host of upcoming industrial projects, as well as several projects still in the pipeline.
These stemmed from last year’s investment conference, with the premier saying R73 billion “is now moving from commitment to implementation, creating 114 000 jobs across multiple sectors”.
Upcoming projects include, but not limited to:
- A R7 billion waste-to-energy project in Johannesburg supported by partners in the Netherlands.
- A R5.4 billion data centre expansion near Midrand funded by Microsoft
- A Chinese steel factory recently added a R2.5 billion investment to create over 1000 jobs
- A R1.9 billion investment by Heineken Global in Midvaal which has begun construction
- Nissan and Chery International Car Manufacturers last month confirmed a deal for the former’s manufacturing assets in Rosslyn to save 700 jobs
- Haier-Kwikot’s R2.4 billion investment in Benoni to secure 700 jobs
Proposed project still pending:
- A direct reduced iron steel plant in Lesedi local municipality to create 1 000 jobs
- The Gauteng Dry Port to create 50 000 jobs thanks to R50 billion investment, earmarked for a 2027 start date
- R4 billion secured by the idle Lanseria Smart City for a film studio project to create 10 000 jobs for creatives
- Special Economic Zones (SEZ) in Tshwane, the Vaal and Springs at a combined cost of R35.2 billion, yielding roughly 55 000 jobs
- A concessionaire for the Gautrain over the next 15 years and 30 companies having “raised their hands willing to bankroll” the high-speed rail between Gauteng and Limpopo.
“All these investments are ready and capable of assisting us to defeat unemployment in our province, totalling just 250 000 jobs, especially for the youth,” said Lesufi.
‘Cannot live on promises’
The DA’s Gauteng leader, Solly Msimanga, pointed out that unemployment still sat at 33% in the province, that crime was high and that residents had heard these words before.
“Again, Gauteng residents have been given promises, but they cannot live on promises and apologies.
“He promises service delivery to all residents in the province, while service delivery in this province is currently on life support,” said Msimanga.
Regarding the proposed infrastructure projects, Msimanga suggested that Lesufi focus on revitalising existing industrial nodes rather than investing in grand ideas.
“Instead of focusing on the current SEZ that are not yielding positive results, Lesufi is creating more infrastructure that needs to be maintained instead of fixing the existing SEZ,” he said.
The Premier concluded by saying he should be judged on his ability to turn the situation around.
“This is never easy and will never be easy. The journey is never plain sailing. However, we remain committed to overcoming.
“We will continue to do everything humanly possible to realise the Gauteng of our dreams,” he said.
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