KwaDukuza Municipality to invest R12 million in council chamber expansion
The KwaDukuza Municipality is set to spend close to R12 million expanding its council chamber to allow for larger attendance at its meetings.
The municipality aims to increase the capacity of its chamber from 60 physical seats to a total of 100. In a statement, the municipality said, “In a significant step to enhance the exponential growth of the municipality, the council of KwaDukuza has committed an amount of R12 million towards expanding the capacity of the municipal council chambers.”
“This is a strategic move aimed at accommodating a larger audience, catalysing council’s confidence in the decision-making process, and ensuring seamless administrative activity.”
The current council chambers do not have the capacity to convene ordinary sittings due to demarcation reforms and the growth of proportional representation of parties over the years. Within the current Term of Office, the council is composed of 59 party representatives, which is a significant growth from 57 compared to the previous Term of Office. As an alternative, all council sittings are convened at the KwaDukuza Town Hall to address this shortfall.
The proposed improvements will include:
- Demolition of existing internal walls and ablution facilities
- Structural expansion
- Installation of new roof trusses with roof tiles
- Upgrading the lighting system
- Installation of access control gates
- Enhancements to communication and information technology systems
- Data cabling
- Air conditioning
- Rainwater harvesting systems
- Fitted fixed timber furniture and movable chairs
Reacting to the proposal at a groundbreaking ceremony at the municipal council chambers on 06 October 2025, KwaDukuza Mayor Siduduzo Gumede said the upgrades are much needed as they reflect the council’s long-term vision as a fast-growing municipality geared towards progress.
“We appreciate the progress and hope that the work will be done as planned. Ours is to play oversight to ensure that the project will be completed on time. Accordingly, the municipality deserves this moment due to its imminent growth potential and progress in fulfilling its vision,” said Gumede.
The municipality has appointed Rod’s Construction as the main contractor and UrbanRu (Pty) Ltd to oversee the implementation of the project, which is billed for completion in seven months.