Residents of eNgonyameni, south of Durban, are set to benefit from improved access to schools, healthcare facilities and public transport after the handover of road, bridge, and water infrastructure worth about R9 million.
The projects were handed over by eThekwini Municipality Mayor Cyril Xaba and Water and Sanitation Deputy Minister David Mahlobo on Friday. The infrastucture includes a newly constructed access bridge, a one-kilometre concrete road, two rural borehole networks and houses delivered through the Vumengazi Rural Housing Project and its rectification programme.
The municipality invested R8 million in the road and bridge project, which replaces infrastructure repeatedly damaged by flooding.
The concrete road and bridge contribute to a safe and reliable transport link for residents and ensure easier access to public transport, local schools, and healthcare facilities.
The concrete infrastructure was chosen to withstand extreme weather conditions and ensuring long-term resilience.
The projects form part of the municipality’s ongoing service delivery acceleration programme aimed at restoring dignity, driving rural development, and improving the quality of life for residents.
Speaking at the project handover, Xaba urged the community to protect the new infrastructure against vandalism, warning that damage to municipal property undermines development.
"Vandalising municipal property sets our communities back and drains resources that could be used to develop other needy areas," Xaba said.
Xaba also highlighted the city's proactive steps to mitigate water shortages in areas which lacked formal piped networks by officially handing over the Tafelkop Borehole Project, valued at approximately R1 million, to help address water shortages in communities without formal piped water networks.
The initiative forms part of a broader programme to install 94 boreholes in targeted water-scarce communities.
The borehole roll-out is a vital immediate intervention to stabilise alternative water supply while the municipality continues with its broader, long-term multi-billion-rand water infrastructure overhaul across eThekwini.
Xaba reaffirmed the municipality’s commitment to fast-tracking the delivery of services such as water, roads, and sanitation to bridge the development gap between urban and rural wards.
Mahlobo commended the strides the city has made in improving water infrastructure and expanding access to water, including through alternative supply solutions.
“eThekwini has come a long way in improving water infrastructure and boosting water supply even if it means exploring alternative measures,” he said. – SAnews.gov.za
