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Nongoma Local Municipality: I wish to inform the people of KwaZulu-Natal that we remain committed towards the acceleration of the rollout of human settlements throughout the corners of KwaZulu-Natal. We are turning a tide against underdevelopment.

Today I have been visiting rural housing projects in Nongoma Local Municipality in my capacity as the Champion of Operation Sukuma Sakhe deployed in Zululand District.

Tomorrow morning, I am scheduled to visit Osuthu Royal Palace to give progress  report on the two house projects that His Majesty – the late Isilo Samabandla had requested the department to construct for the local communities.

This morning, together with the leadership of Zululand, Nongoma and OPhongolo local municipalities we interrogated progress we are making towards the construction of 15 000 houses. I am encouraged by the spirit of partnership and an integrated approach involving all spheres of government.

In this meeting, I reiterated our commitment as the department to ensure that we use the construction of houses as a catalyst for local economic development and job creation for local communities.

We have noted concerns that, there are instances wherein local emerging contractors are ignored. We remain firm behind the government’s decision of driving radical economic transformation through the rollout of human settlements. To this end, we have agreed that as the department to work with municipalities to ensure that previously disadvantaged communities are assisted to get into this sector of our economy. We want local emerging contractors in the construction sector to be prioritized.  

Importantly, our view is that the construction of new homes and related settlements is a catalyst for other sectors of the economy.  The mining sector is stimulated through the production of copper, iron ore and other raw materials used in construction.  As we invest in Nongoma and other municipalities, we are stimulating the manufacturing sector for the production of steel, bricks, tiles, doors, window frames and so on.

In addition, jobs are created in the wholesale sector where these manufactured products are traded to the implementing agents that are involved in the construction.  We are actively resuscitating  the retail sector to sell housing materials and household goods. It enhances banking and financial services, which oils the wheels of trade and industry.

The investment in Nongoma Local Municipality alone is more than R1 billion:-

•          Osuthu B Rural Housing Project Phase 1 : R82, 6 million construction of 2000 houses;  

•          Osuthu B Rural Housing Phase 2: R 86,3 million construction of 2000 houses;

•          Siyazama Rural Housing Phase 1: R 55,3 million construction of 2000 houses;

•          Matheni B Rural Housing  Project: R82,8 million construction of 2000 houses;

•          Vuna Rural Housing Project: R82,4 million construction of 2000 houses;

•          Kombuzi Rural Housing: R64, 1 million construction of 1500 houses;

•          Nkunzana Rural Housing: R73,2 million construction of 1800 houses;

•          Nkukhwini Rural Housing: R85, 3 million construction of 3000 houses;

•          Zidwadweni Rural Housing Projects – R75, 3 million construction of 1200;

•          Khokhwaneni  Rural Housing Project: R39, 1 million construction of 3,100;

•          Buxeden Rural Housing: R83, 6 million construction of 1400 houses;

•          Holinyoka Rutal Housing – R68 million construction of 1100 houses;

•          Maye/Dabhasi Rural Housing Project: R77, 2 million construction of 1000 houses

The construction of these houses is about giving back dignity to the poor and to those who are in rural areas. It is about creating decent living standards, where people can make choices about their lives, that of their children and where women and youth are not left out of the mainstream of the economy.

We want rural areas to become active social and economic centres where investors can see the potential of rural areas and the  opportunities that  exist for business development.

Today, we handed over houses that have been completed as part of Operation Sukuma Sakhe. Other  houses are currently being constructed with a clear time frame. We have also approved new housing projects in addition to those I have mentioned.

We have stated in the past that we have experimented about ways of speeding up the construction of houses and we can state that we have found a winning formula.

It gives us immense pleasure to see speed and improved quality of houses being constructed for our communities. This is an indication that we have successfully built solid and professional relationships with implementing agents.

We wish to warn other implementing agents that are constructing shoddy houses that we won’t hesitate to act. This is the matter that we have discussed with the leadership of Nongoma municipality and other municipalities.

Issued by the MEC for Human Settlements and Public Works Jomo Sibiya.