A newly-built app aimed at improving service delivery and rebuilding civic pride in Ward 36 will officially be launched by community activist Sam Reddy on January 10, offering communities a shared platform to track problems, monitor progress and hold authorities accountable.
Called My Street Champion (MSC), the free to use app is designed to bring residents and ward councillors together by creating a transparent, community-facing view of service delivery issues.
Rather than replacing municipal reporting systems, MSC adds an additional layer of public oversight, allowing residents to see whether reported problems are being addressed and where attention is still needed.
Reddy said the idea was born out of frustration with the lack of visibility after faults are reported through official channels.
“Residents do what they are supposed to do by logging issues with the municipality, but then everything goes quiet. My Street Champion makes progress visible. It turns service delivery from isolated complaints into a shared, community-driven process,” he said.
The app allows residents to become “Street Champions” by uploading verified information such as photos and location data, tracking the status of issues, and confirming when work has been completed.
Positive civic participation is recognised through points, leaderboards and public acknowledgement, encouraging residents to take pride in their streets, neighbourhoods and wards.
Multiple users can follow and update the same issue, creating what MSC describes as a living record of service delivery on the ground. This approach ensures that repairs are not only promised but also seen, confirmed and celebrated by the community.
For ward councillors, the platform provides real-time dashboards, analytics and interactive heat maps that highlight problem areas across a ward. An AI-powered “Councillor” tool helps identify patterns and pressure points, enabling councillors to escalate issues efficiently and route them to the correct municipal departments with accurate, up-to-date information.
The first formal rollout takes place in Ward 36, where councillor Heinz de Boer has adopted the platform, marking what MSC calls a new partnership model between residents and elected representatives.
Reddy said launching in his own ward was intentional.
“As someone who lives in Ward 36, there was no better place to start than at home,” he said.
“Change doesn’t begin in boardrooms or policy documents. It begins on the street you live on, with the people you know. By starting here, we’re showing that when a community takes ownership and works alongside its councillor, real accountability is possible. This is how we make shift happen — from our own neighbourhood outward.”
Check out councillor De Boer’s social media pages as well as Facebook and WhatsApp groups for updates.
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