GOVERNMENT is making progress in addressing the service delivery challenges facing Mzansi citizens.
Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni told the media briefing in Tshwane on Monday, 11 December, that this was the view of the Cabinet which met for special meeting on Friday, 8 December.
She said members noted, in particular, progress made by the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) that appointed Vaal Central Water as the Implementing Agent to oversee the sanitation infrastructure challenges in Matjhabeng Local Municipality in the Free State, which had not been operational for more than 10 years.
“The intervention mandate is divided into three areas of scope, namely wastewater treatment works (WWTWs), pump stations and sewer networks. DWS has allocated funds for four financial years to complete the required work,” said Ntshavheni.
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She said DWS has spent R394 million on renewing or upgrading of the WWTWs. There is a total of 11 WWTWs which nine are not working. This affected townships such as Thabong and Kutlwanong, which experience sewer spillage because of blocked pipes and chambers.
The minister pointed out that there were 52 out of 57 sewer pump stations that were not working. She said the total of 1 543km of sewer pipelines were blocked.
“Ten contractors have been appointed for refurbishment of 26 pump station and overall progress is 34% completion,” said Ntshavheni.
She said similar work was done in Balkfontein and Virginia.
She said Cabinet was briefed on measures that are being put in place to avoid the challenges that faced Nsfas in the 2023 post-matric academic year.
Ntshavheni said Cabinet also received an update on progress with the process to reinstate the Mossel Bay GTL refinery as a one of the critical components of PetroSA’s turnaround strategy.
“Cabinet was updated about the process followed by CEF (central energy fund) to source partners with requisite technical and financial resources to support PetroSA in bringing the refinery back to full operation,” she said.
The minister said the preferred partner would share in the risk and rewards of reinstatement of the refinery.
Ntshavheni said Cabinet considered and approved for publication the Freight Logistics Roadmap, which seeks to address problems in the logistics system.
“The challenges within South Africa’s freight logistics system pose a significant constraint on economic growth and job creation. The impact is currently felt more in job losses in the mining and manufacturing sectors. The immediate priority is to stabilise and improve the operational performance of the freight rail network, which presents a severe constraint on exports,” she said.
