Kimberley
The MEC for Roads and Public Works in the Northern Cape, Mme Fufe Makatong (pictured), was actively participating in the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) Provincial Week, which commenced on Monday, 16 September until Friday, 21 September 2024. This follows her attendance at a session in Parliament on Tuesday, 10 September 2024, where she briefed the NCOP on the successes and challenges of public infrastructure projects in the Northern Cape.
The theme for this year’s NCOP Provincial Week is “Confronting the Challenges Facing the Timely Delivery of Viable Public Infrastructure to Communities.” This comes at a critical time, as the country faces an increasing number of delayed, abandoned, or incomplete government infrastructure projects.
During her briefing in Parliament and throughout the NCOP week, MEC Makatong emphasized that the Northern Cape’s situation differs from other provinces. While acknowledging that some projects have been delayed, MEC noted that the majority of projects in the province are either ongoing or completed. The delays have largely been as a result of budget reprioritization and the delayed Division of Revenue Act (DORA) payments to client Departments.
The DORA payments have resumed, however, in some instances, it has been insufficient to cover all outstanding commitments. MEC believes that if the payments are sustained, contractors will be able to prevent further delays and ensure timely delivery of essential infrastructure.
The Department of Roads and Public Works is currently managing 48 capital projects on behalf of user departments, while some departments are implementing their own projects. These projects are categorized as follows:
- 15 projects for the Department of Education
- 22 projects for the Department of Health
- 5 projects for the Department of Sports, Arts, and Culture
- 3 projects for the Department of Social Development
- 3 projects for other departments
The NCOP provincial week oversight identified projects which MEC Makatong had to lead and give on-sight account, in the John Taolo Gaetsewe and Francis Baard Districts.
Amongst others, the delegation visited the first phase of the Pniel Paving Road Project, a 4.5 km project connecting the community of Pniel to the R31 main road. They also inspected the newly completed student accommodation project, which will house student nurses. Practical completion and hand over of the two clusters of the project has already been handed over to the Department of Health, whilst the other two clusters practical completion and hand over is expected to be done at the end of September 2024. The delays in handing over the last two clusters were due to multiple incidents of cable theft which affected the testing of the equipments that were installed.
The NCOP delegates expressed satisfaction with the progress of the infrastructure projects in the Northern Cape and emphasized that the province is on the right track to achieving its infrastructure development goals.
