Durban residents should be excited about the future of the city as promising developments are on the horizon, says Mayor Cyril Xaba.

Xaba said after the change of leadership at both the local and provincial levels, there has been renewed enthusiasm about the city, with investors eager to fund some of the proposals that have been made previously.

He made these remarks while addressing ANC members at an ANC stakeholder meeting in Durban on Sunday.

"That area in the Outer west is going to be our Midrand equivalent. We are meeting with financiers who support our stance as a city. They are saying to me, Mr Mayor, we had people coming to us with good proposals, but when we looked at where the city was, we were not confident in funding those proposals. With the change of leadership at both the provincial and local levels, they are now willing to finance some of the business proposals placed on their table."

He mentioned that over the next ten years, the city will undergo a significant transformation. "You need to be excited about the city; you have every reason to be excited about the city. Of course, there has been a lot of wastage, and we are going to cut all the wastage we have identified in the city. We want to deliver a rand value of services to our community,” he said.

Speaking on the draft budget last week, Xaba said that R588 million will be spent on catalytic projects over the Medium Term Expenditure Framework 2025/2026. This includes projects such as Oceans uMhlanga, Brickworks, Ntshongweni / Westown, Giba Business Park, Durban Film City, and Durban Waterfront.

He also mentioned that the 2025/26 budget will fund several job-creation projects with a focus on youth development.

At Sunday's meeting, ANC members expressed their support for Xaba, stating that he is doing a good job leading the municipality and that they had seen improvements in the city.

THE MERCURY