Tuesday August 27, 2019 Tel: 013-754-1600 Do we have water infrastructure? Bongani Hlatshwayo treated. In the province there are a number certain instances, there is no electricity. In straight to the streams, polluting the water. of water treatment works run by the 17 local reality, you cannot put up structures without If you drive along certain areas, you can The province has water infrastructure, municipalities who are the water operating first installing bulk infrastructure like smell the stink. It has many environmental but it passes through communities without authorities, all of them. Some of them have water and electricity. Those matters are not implications when the raw sewage supplying them with water. different capacities. If you are going to clean attended to in the province. runs downstream, because the people This was the assertion of deputy minister the water, some of the treatment plants are “Lastly, in the value water chain, there is a downstream will be affected. It has a high for water and sanitation, David Mahlobo in small, that is why they have to increase question of our waste water treatment in the environmental impact and a financial an exclusive interview with Mpumalanga the capacity of the province. The waste impact, because how can you clean it? Mirror. treatment plants. water treatment and “But there are certain industries who are “The question of whether the province “In other areas the sewer networks, naughty, too. They are naughty, because has infrastructure often crops up, and the like Nkomazi and All the municipalities are in some of the old they are supposed to comply with their answer is yes, we do have it, with those bulk Mbombela, they growing. Therefore the townships, were built license conditions. You also have raw pipes carrying water and passing through are using package issue of water storage is with now outdated sewage on the streets in a number of communities without connecting to them. plants and it uses a very important technology, using municipalities going into streams and During my tenure as HoD for Cogta in the lot of chemicals and asbestos pipes. Up to polluting the water. province, we once dealt with the issue of becomes expensive a certain point, you “The last matter is institutional capacity. bulk water being shared with the community to maintain. That can maintain it and Some of the water authorities in the together with the deputy president, David is how the value chain will look like. You repair it. In the process, that material starts province have a problem. They were Mabuza, when he was still premier. need reservoirs where you can store the to leak, attributing to the fact that it is old, given a function, but they do not have the “In the main, you can go to water. In many communities the reservoirs and the asset must be replaced. technical know-how. If you go to any water Bushbuckridge, which has the Inyaka Dam, are not there. Even if they are there, the “In eMalahleni when I was there, there treatment plant or facility, it entails how the bulk infrastructure is there. Once there communities have grown so much. Albert were too many water leaks. many people you need of particular skills, is infrastructure, then the water must be Luthuli Local Municipality, Bushbuckridge, “I am told there are about 900 kilometres like your process controllers, electricians, Thembisile Hani municipalities have grown. of those asbestos pipes which are more than an operational manual because this is like In fact, they are all growing. 50 years old. The last audit report revealed a car. “Therefore, the issue of water storage that it had 47 percent leaks, and more than “You go into these plants, the numbers is very important and this is where that, because sometimes some municipalities are few and the technical know-how is not sometimes money is not being do not have instrumentation to measure just there. That is why there are these lapses, spent. Lastly, the province how much goes in there. because we do not have the right people to needs to connect the water to “They are not sure of the volume of water do them. There is a lot of support because houses. In many areas around the pipes can withstand. DWS, MISA and Cogta giving grants to the province, houses have “That is how the issues of infrastructure local municipalities for such infrastructure, been built, but there are no look like. On the basis of that, you have but we need to do more,” concluded amenities like water. In raw sewage in a number of them. It goes Mahlobo. Deputy minister for water and sanitation, David Mahlobo. 2 Mpumalanga Mirror COMMUNITY August Edition HOD Lucky Monareng, MEC Vusi Shongwe and Thelma Mgiba. Nomvula Maya. Acknowledging the work of women farmers Thobile Mlangeni acknowledge them and make them happy their hard work and commitment to tilling Local Municipality in the Nkangala District, so they feel at home,” said Shongwe. He the land to feed the nation, we also need to scooping the overall winner category, as The MEC for agriculture, rural promised a bigger and better awards next appreciate the struggles and sacrifices they well as the top entrepreneur smallholder development, land and environmental year. “Next year I am doubling the prizes made,” Shongwe said. category and the ministerial special award affairs, Vusi Shongwe, honoured women in and I am taking this to bigger spaces, where He said he was satisfied with the number under youth category. Mahlalela won agriculture for contributing to food security, we can do everything of young women trophies, tablet and prize money to the value economic growth, and fighting against as we wish, and I taking part in the of R390 000. poverty and joblessness. want to invite the We are acknowledging agricultural sector. The Department of Agriculture, Forestry The 2019 Provincial DAFF Female premier next year to the contribution made by He also encouraged and Fisheries (DAFF) FEA Programme is an Entrepreneur Awards was celebrated under hand over the prizes more women to take annual competition, which was previously the theme ‘Celebrating two decades of to the women who women in producing food, part in agriculture. He called the Female Farmer of the Year when women’s victory in agriculture, forestry are doing their best in feeding the nation and encouraged them not it was instated 20 years ago. It is an annual and fisheries’. It was held at a glittering agriculture. creating job opportunities to shy away, even in event, which takes place during Women’s ceremony at the Nutting House outside “Most of these the times of the fourth Month, starting with nomination of projects, Mbombela. women are farming industrial revolution. followed by a robust physical verification “We are acknowledging the contribution and have grown from subsistence to “Human beings will always be needed in and adjudication process. made by women in producing food, feeding smallholder and commercial farmers. agriculture. Machines will never replace The winners in the different categories the nation and creating job opportunities Some are exporting their products through them,” said Shongwe. will represent the province in the National for the nation. They receive awards because established export markets. As we take The night saw Khulile Mahlalela, a pig DAFF Female Entrepreneur Awards on they are tilling the land and we want to time to recognize our female farmers for farmer from Middelburg in Steve Tshwete August 29 in the Western Cape. 434953R ,¶P.HEDOHSLOH5DPDIRNR0LVV0SXPDODQJDWKH$PEDVVDGRU IRUWKH0SXPDODQJD(FRQRPLF5HJXODWRU (YHU\GD\DGGLFWLRQVJRXQQRWLFHGEHFDXVHSHRSOH GRQ¶WNQRZWKHVLJQVWRORRNRXWIRU .QRZLQJWKHVHZDUQLQJVLJQVLVLPSRUWDQW ,QGXOJLQJRQDOFRKRORUJDPEOLQJWRHVFDSHZRUU\ MEC Vusi Shongwe and the overall winner Khulile Mahlalela and Bheki Buthelezi receiving a ERUHGRPRUWURXEOH prize from one of the categories. +DYLQJWKRXJKWVRIGULQNLQJDOFRKRORUJDPEOLQJ WRGLVUXSW\RXUFRQFHQWUDWLRQ 6SHQGLQJPRUHWLPHRUPRQH\RQJDPEOLQJ RUGULQNLQJDOFRKRO +DYLQJWURXEOHFRQWUROOLQJ\RXUJDPEOLQJ RUDOFRKROKDELWV 6KRXOG\RXQHHGKHOSZLWK $JDPEOLQJUHODWHGSUREOHP FDOOWKH15*3RQ RUVHQGD³SOHDVHFDOOPH´WR $OFRKRODEXVHUHODWHGSUREOHP FDOO6$1&$RQ )RUPRUHLQIRUPDWLRQRQP\IXWXUH DFWLYLWLHVIROORZWKH0(5RQIDFHERRNDW PSXPDODQJDHFRQRPLFUHJXODWRU,QVWDJUDP DWPSXPDODQJDHFRQRPLFUHJXODWRU WZLWWHUDW#0S(FRQRPLF5HJ MEC Vusi Shongwe and Thandi Mokoena. August Edition COMMUNITY Mpumalanga Mirror 3 Youth speak up regarding their concerns Thobile Mlangeni Some youth attending the recent youth parliament made an appeal to traditional leaders to teach them witchcraft, a skill they assume is necessary in the fourth industrial revolution (4IR). “We request traditional healers to teach us the skills on how to fly using brooms, because this is fundamental for the 4IR,” said Mzwakhe Nkosi, from Msukaligwa, during the sitting of the Youth Parliament in the Mpumalanga legislature. His submissions were, however, brushed off because they were not raised nor discussed in the commissions. Siyabonga Malandule, the regional secretary of the ANC spoke on a number of socioeconomic challenges faced by the youth. “We need land reform and incubation programmes, and skills provided must match the skills needed in the economy of the province,” he said. He also raised the Faith Msibi, a delegate from eMalahleni. youth’s concern on government making decisions without consulting them. “Government has a tendency of deciding on issues of young people without consulting young people at all. Young people should be consulted in programmes for them, including the youth development fund. Government should also review the extended public works programmes,” he Siyabonga Malandule in the Chamber. said. Malandule called on the visibility of Mandlenkosi Mkhwanazi said the unnecessary retrenchments. There should government departments in townships. government must review the supply chain be harsher sanctions against nepotism in the Some of the issues raised includes the policy to allow the youth to participate in the workplace. We also want the National Youth participation of the youth in schools mainstream economy. Development Agency to focus on youth nutrition programmes, the need for Faith Msibi from eMalahleni from deep rural areas,” she said.