8 March 2007
Eastern Cape MEC for Safety, Liaison, Roads and Transport, Mr Thobile
Mhlahlo, will officially open the road between Cala and Lady Frere worth R173
million on Monday, 12 March 2007 at 10h00.
The event will take place at Ndwana Village between Cala and Lady Frere at
Sakhisizwe Municipality in the Chris Hani District.
The construction of this road has benefited 395 local people, of which 202
were men, 82 women, 108 youth and three disabled persons.
This road will assist local communities from 16 villages such as Upper
Ndwana, Ndwana, Ngxumza, Askeaton, Seplan, Seplan Mission, Lower Seplan,
Bumbana, Ntlalontle, Lamun, Hala No. 1, Hala No. 2, Greyspan, Upper Ndonga,
Stony Croft and Pesi Village, which are all situated within Sakhisizwe and
Emalahleni Municipalities.
The programme of the day will feature the launch of the Sakha Isizwe
Community-Based Transportation Programme in the district, which is a
newly-introduced programme by the Department of Roads and Transport in an
effort to construct and maintain rural infrastructure and simultaneously push
back the frontiers of poverty.
It is an Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) project, which has already
benefited close to 3 000 households in the province through labour-intensive
methods of road construction.
An amount of R8 million was specifically assigned to the Chris Hani District
for the 2006/07 financial year, specifically to address strategic issues for
the benefit of the district municipal communities.
In the Christ District, there are 275 Sakha Isizwe Household Contractors,
distributed in three local municipalities such as:
* Sakhisizwe Local Municipality: Cala - 50, Elliot - 33
* Emalahleni Local Municipality: Bolotwa - 105, Lady Frere - 10
* Ngcobo Local Municipality: Ngcobo - 77
Plans are afoot to increase the number once the plant hired to rehabilitate
gravel roads have completed their contractual obligations. Currently, the plant
is already on site in the following localities:
* Lukhanji Municipality: Whittlesea/Katberg - 25 km
* Lukhanji Municipality: McBride/Tsitsikamma - 25 km
* Emalahleni Municipality: Lupapasi - 18 km
* Sakhisizwe Municipality: Mhlwazi/Elliot - 28 km
Plant hire for the following localities still has to go to the departmentâs
evaluation and awarding committees:
* Lukhanji Municipality: Tsomo Valley - 25 km
* Emalahleni and Intsika Yethu Municipalities: Lady Frere/Cofimvaba - 18 km
This implies that not less than 139 households will benefit from this
programme in various localities to maintain these roads. Interactions with the
relevant municipalities have resumed in the Transport Forum Meetings to procure
local household contractors to maintain these roads.
Furthermore, MEC Mhlahlo will officially hand over 375 new bicycles as part
of the departmentâs Shova Lula Bicycle Project, which will benefit 16 schools
at Emalahleni, Sakhisizwe and Lukhanji local municipalities as follows:
* Emalahleni municipality:
Name of school: Nzimankulu SSS
No of bicycles: 30
Name of school: Phumlani SSS
No of bicycles: 20
Name of school: Ntsokotha SSS
No of bicycles: 20
Name of school: Thozamisa SSS
No of bicycles: 20
Name of school: Chibini SSS
No of bicycles: 13
Name of school: Thambekile SSS
No of bicycles: 30
Name of school: Matyhantya JSS
No of bicycles: 26
* Sakhisizwe municipality
Name of school: Ida HS
No of bicycles: 16
Name of school: Sifonondile SSS
No of bicycles: 15
Name of school: DM Skosana HS
No of bicycles: 20
Name of school: Bathwanda Ndondo SSS
No of bicycles: 40
Name of school: Ndwana JSS
No of bicycles: 15
* Lukhanji municipality
Name of school: Velalanga SSS
No of bicycles: 15
Name of school: Gwatyu Farm School
No of bicycles: 30
Name of school: Zweledinga SSS
No of bicycles: 30
Name of school: Manzenzulu JSS
No of bicycles: 20
Enquiries:
Ncedo Kumbaca
Spokesperson Ministry for Safety, Liaison, Roads and Transport
Cell: 082 442 2388/ 073 206 6569
Issued by: Department of Roads and Transport, Eastern Cape Provincial
Government
8 March 2007
