Deputy President Paul Mashatile says they will improve efforts to monitor the controversial multi-billion-rand Giyani bulk water project. Mashatile conducted an oversight visit to monitor progress in completing the project that was meant to supply water to 55 villages.
First commissioned in 2010, over R4 billion has thus far been used for the project thats yet to supply water to most of the intended beneficiaries. Local authorities have appealed to Mashatile for additional funds for the reticulation phase of the project.
Mashatile started his fact-finding visit at the Nandoni Dam in Thohoyandou. The construction of a pipeline to move water from Nandoni to Nsami Dam in Giyani formed part of the projects first phase. That phase was eventually completed last year, following several delays and work stoppages.
The deputy president then monitored the functioning of the 20-megalitre treatment capacity at the Giyani water treatment plant. He says some of the lessons learned from the project include the significance of keeping a close eye on ongoing projects.
"When they said two years, we said why? Is the problem money? And they said yes, and there were these other investigations.We are sorting out all those things, so the lesson to us is that there must always be proper, planning, and resources committed, and ongoing monitoring and monitoring must not end in the office. We must go on outreach programs on the ground and that is what we are doing here," says Mashatile.
