Day: February 20, 2024

The Gauteng Provincial Government (GPG) will go ahead with plans to establish a solar farm park which is expected to harvest at least ‘800 megawatts of solar power and supply it to the electricity grid’.

This was revealed by Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi during the State of the Province Address delivered in Johannesburg on Monday.

‘We are pleased to announce that the long term plan with Sibanye-Stillwater Board, has approved the land leases of the appointed six independent power producers who will develop a photovoltaic power station, also known as a solar farm cluster, in the Merafong Local Municipality.

‘This is designed to harvest at least 800 megawatts of solar power and supply it to the electricity grid, which will be a game changer for our province,’ he said.

Furthermore, the province is expected to add at least 100MW to the grid from April.

‘This is an initiative of the GPG implemented by City Power on our behalf using the Open Cycle Gas Turbine technology facilities in Johnware and Durban Street
. This will be available from the 1st of April 2024.

‘We will continue to expand to 300 megawatts in the new financial year. This investment combined with smart metres can generate the megawatts needed to cushion our residents against two stages of load shedding, a critical step toward energy stability for the nation’s economic hub,’ he said.

Other interventions

In the immediate term, the province has moved to protect some 21 healthcare facilities from load shedding with the installation of Solar photovoltaic (PV) and battery storage systems.

A pilot project for a microgrid in Alexandra township is also being rolled out which, the Premier said, will ‘provide a stand alone solution to meet basic power needs for low-income households within townships and informal settlements’.

The project is expected to expand to 13 other communities.

‘Having identified the hardship of many of our communities languishing in the dark, some for up to three years due to illegal connections, cable theft, vandalism, and chroni
c non-payment, we intervened to address the situation,’ Lesufi said.

The Premier added that the provincial government, together with Eskom and City Power, partnered to deliver some 429 transformers to communities.

‘To date, 333 have already been installed and switched on, benefitting no less than 32 000 township households. We have impacted the communities of Kagiso, Boiphelong, Doornkop, Orange Farm and others.

‘We will intensify this programme until every township and household has been legally switched on, especially Evaton, Ivory Park, Winterveld and many other communities,’ he said.

Lesufi reflected on the effects that load shedding has on residents and the economy.

‘The protracted electricity crisis has caused significant hardship for people in our province and has had a detrimental effect on the growth of Gauteng’s economy. Power shortages have a negative impact on the availability of healthcare services, food and water, the level of crime, and unemployment rates, amongst others.

‘Although energy
is not a competency of the province, load shedding’s crippling effect on the functionality of the state and its impact on broader society compelled us to intervene,’ he said.

Source: South African Government News Agency

WINDHOEK: The death of former President Hage Geingob represents a great loss to Namibia’s education and training sector, Higher Education, Training and Innovation Minister, Dr Itah Kandjii-Murangi, has said.

Geingob, who passed away in Windhoek on 04 February, appointed Kandjii-Murangi to the higher education portfolio in March 2015.

The former University of Namibia dean of students said Geingob advocated for innovation and training in the higher education sector.

At the onset, when he assumed the presidency in 2015, she said President Geingob told her of his vision of transforming tertiary education and the need to prepare Namibia for the fourth industrial revolution.

‘He informed me that what he expects of me is to ensure that I take off where the previous ministers left off. He also indicated that we are in a different era and that we need to see a visible integration of technology and innovation in our higher education and training systems.

One of the things he mentioned was that the aspect of resear
ch is critical, particularly in our economy, as well as developing local researchers,’ Kandjii-Murangi said, recalling what her former principal initially tasked her to do.

The minister in an exclusive interview described President Geingob as a highly professional person, an educator and a scholar of note.

‘In the cabinet he chaired, that’s where we saw him showing his political prowess and vast knowledge in terms of different complex situations within the country, regionally as well as globally.’

The minister further recalled that the former head of state was easy to work with.

‘At first, when you meet him, you will probably think he is hard and authoritarian. But when you get to know him, you realise that this person is eager to share his knowledge with all those who work with him. And one thing is that he was gifted in was identifying and developing talent,’ she said.

According to Kandjii-Murangi, when Geingob put together his first cabinet, he took a bold decision to address technical and vocational
education and training (TVET) in Namibia. He directed that TVET be transformed so that it could become visible and a career path of choice for school learners.

‘He directed that access should be expanded by building technical and vocational institutions in regions where they did not exist then,’ she said.

Since then, a lot of work has been done to realise President Geingob’s vision for TVET, but more is still to be done.

‘In terms of what we have achieved, we have amended the TVET policy to focus specifically on trades needed to drive the economy. These are trades that speak to the issue of agriculture in terms of ensuring that there is food security in our country. We rolled out agricultural trades in several of our TVET centres where they were not in existence,’ the minister said.

To ensure the quality of technical and vocational education, Kandjii-Murangi now has a fully-fledged faculty of instructor education at NUST that only looks at TVET instructors.

She noted that former President Geingob, when h
e launched his first Harambee Prosperity Plan (HHP), directed that each region has a TVET centre.

In the HPP, he also directed that Namibia adopt TVET technical and vocational education and training as the standardised international training convention.

Kandjii-Murangi added that four regions have already been identified for the establishment of new TVET colleges.

‘This year we will launch new TVET centres in Kunene, including the one in the Hardap Region we have already launched. And another one in Keetmanshoop. There is one coming up in Nkurenkuru. The idea of these TVET centres is to ensure that each will focus on different technical trades,’ she said.

She went on to say that in July 2021, Geingob appointed an eight-member presidential task force on the Fourth Industrial Revolution mandated to look specifically at the preparedness of Namibia in terms of the demands of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

‘That led our two public universities to begin looking at their academic programmes and making sure t
hat they are aligned to the demands of the Fourth Industrial Revolution,’ Kandjii-Murangi said.

Source: The Namibia Press Agency

WINDHOEK: The death of former President Hage Geingob represents a great loss to Namibia’s education and training sector, Higher Education, Training and Innovation Minister, Dr Itah Kandjii-Murangi, has said.

Geingob, who passed away in Windhoek on 04 February, appointed Kandjii-Murangi to the higher education portfolio in March 2015.

The former University of Namibia dean of students said Geingob advocated for innovation and training in the higher education sector.

At the onset, when he assumed the presidency in 2015, she said President Geingob told her of his vision of transforming tertiary education and the need to prepare Namibia for the fourth industrial revolution.

‘He informed me that what he expects of me is to ensure that I take off where the previous ministers left off. He also indicated that we are in a different era and that we need to see a visible integration of technology and innovation in our higher education and training systems.

One of the things he mentioned was that the aspect of resear
ch is critical, particularly in our economy, as well as developing local researchers,’ Kandjii-Murangi said, recalling what her former principal initially tasked her to do.

The minister in an exclusive interview described President Geingob as a highly professional person, an educator and a scholar of note.

‘In the cabinet he chaired, that’s where we saw him showing his political prowess and vast knowledge in terms of different complex situations within the country, regionally as well as globally.’

The minister further recalled that the former head of state was easy to work with.

‘At first, when you meet him, you will probably think he is hard and authoritarian. But when you get to know him, you realise that this person is eager to share his knowledge with all those who work with him. And one thing is that he was gifted in was identifying and developing talent,’ she said.

According to Kandjii-Murangi, when Geingob put together his first cabinet, he took a bold decision to address technical and vocational
education and training (TVET) in Namibia. He directed that TVET be transformed so that it could become visible and a career path of choice for school learners.

‘He directed that access should be expanded by building technical and vocational institutions in regions where they did not exist then,’ she said.

Since then, a lot of work has been done to realise President Geingob’s vision for TVET, but more is still to be done.

‘In terms of what we have achieved, we have amended the TVET policy to focus specifically on trades needed to drive the economy. These are trades that speak to the issue of agriculture in terms of ensuring that there is food security in our country. We rolled out agricultural trades in several of our TVET centres where they were not in existence,’ the minister said.

To ensure the quality of technical and vocational education, Kandjii-Murangi now has a fully-fledged faculty of instructor education at NUST that only looks at TVET instructors.

She noted that former President Geingob, when h
e launched his first Harambee Prosperity Plan (HHP), directed that each region has a TVET centre.

In the HPP, he also directed that Namibia adopt TVET technical and vocational education and training as the standardised international training convention.

Kandjii-Murangi added that four regions have already been identified for the establishment of new TVET colleges.

‘This year we will launch new TVET centres in Kunene, including the one in the Hardap Region we have already launched. And another one in Keetmanshoop. There is one coming up in Nkurenkuru. The idea of these TVET centres is to ensure that each will focus on different technical trades,’ she said.

She went on to say that in July 2021, Geingob appointed an eight-member presidential task force on the Fourth Industrial Revolution mandated to look specifically at the preparedness of Namibia in terms of the demands of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

‘That led our two public universities to begin looking at their academic programmes and making sure t
hat they are aligned to the demands of the Fourth Industrial Revolution,’ Kandjii-Murangi said.

Source: The Namibia Press Agency

Acting North West Premier Nono Maloyi has during his State of the Province Address (SOPA) announced that the province has allocated R198 million to eradicate 1 356 mud houses.

The Acting Premier said on Tuesday that of these, 579 units have already been delivered.

Although there are still challenges, Maloyi said the province has experienced unprecedented levels of development in the last 30 years.

He told the provincial legislature that the number of households had increased from 591 145 in 1996 to over 1.14 million in 2022.

This means that 88% of houses in the North West are now considered formal housing.

‘Honourable Members, from 2019 to 2023, we have constructed 19 307 houses. By the end of 2023, we had delivered 2 768 houses,’ he told them.

In addition, he announced that the provincial government has now cleared all the hurdles that delayed the Deelpan floods project and reported that 104 houses will be completed at the end of next month.

The Acting Premier said 317 more houses would be built follo
wing the donation of land by Kgosi Kogodi Molete of Bakolobeng and his traditional council.

He was also looking forward to launching the R2.6 billion N14 mixed-use development project in Ventersdorp in the coming weeks.

The development will see the installation of bulk services for 400 sites and create over 600 jobs for locals.

‘The small town of Ventersdorp which comes from a bad history of occupation by a right-wing racist group called AWB will never be the same again. We are restoring the dignity of our people,’ he said.

Meanwhile, the integrated accelerated service delivery approach, Thuntsha Lerole Programme, has to date delivered 6 283 title deeds to beneficiaries across the four districts.

Water

In addition, over 80% of households in the province have access to piped water either inside their dwellings, yards or community stands, as compared to only 20% in 1996.

Last year, the provincial government, in cooperation with the Water and Sanitation Minister Senzo Mchunu, launched the R106 million Din
okana Water Supply Intervention Project.

Maloyi said the North West was pushing ahead with the construction of a R36 million bulk water sewer pipeline at Agisanang township in the Tswaing Local Municipality is due for completion this year.

‘We can report to the people of Madibeng Local Municipality that the Brits Water Treatment Plant will be completed by May this year,’ he said.

The completion of this project is expected to bring an additional 20 mega-litres that will ensure the provision of water in Oukasi, Mothotlung, Damonsville, Mmankau, Brits, Elandsrand, Letlhabile and Sonop.

The pipeline from Mafenya to Tlhabane will be completed in April.

He told members that the 25 mega-litre Tlhabane reservoir is 99% complete and will be handed over within the next two weeks.

Meanwhile, additional boreholes have been drilled and equipped for both the Rooigrond Waste Water Treatment Plant and water augmentation project to address water provision challenges in Mahikeng.

‘The communities of Ramosadi and Sewedin
g in Mahikeng have for the past few months been subjected to inhumane sewer spillage in their households and locality.

‘We have intervened and a contractor has now returned to the site to complete the project of constructing a new pipeline to be delivered by Mahikeng Local Municipality and funded by Ngaka Modiri Molema District.’

Maloyi also confirmed that all water leaks at Tigane and Hartebeesfontein have been fixed and now there is a stable water supply.

The construction of the over R200 million water pipeline from Pudumoe to Huhudi began in September last year to improve the bulk water supply.

Source: South African Government News Agency

Acting North West Premier Nono Maloyi has during his State of the Province Address (SOPA) announced that the province has allocated R198 million to eradicate 1 356 mud houses.

The Acting Premier said on Tuesday that of these, 579 units have already been delivered.

Although there are still challenges, Maloyi said the province has experienced unprecedented levels of development in the last 30 years.

He told the provincial legislature that the number of households had increased from 591 145 in 1996 to over 1.14 million in 2022.

This means that 88% of houses in the North West are now considered formal housing.

‘Honourable Members, from 2019 to 2023, we have constructed 19 307 houses. By the end of 2023, we had delivered 2 768 houses,’ he told them.

In addition, he announced that the provincial government has now cleared all the hurdles that delayed the Deelpan floods project and reported that 104 houses will be completed at the end of next month.

The Acting Premier said 317 more houses would be built follo
wing the donation of land by Kgosi Kogodi Molete of Bakolobeng and his traditional council.

He was also looking forward to launching the R2.6 billion N14 mixed-use development project in Ventersdorp in the coming weeks.

The development will see the installation of bulk services for 400 sites and create over 600 jobs for locals.

‘The small town of Ventersdorp which comes from a bad history of occupation by a right-wing racist group called AWB will never be the same again. We are restoring the dignity of our people,’ he said.

Meanwhile, the integrated accelerated service delivery approach, Thuntsha Lerole Programme, has to date delivered 6 283 title deeds to beneficiaries across the four districts.

Water

In addition, over 80% of households in the province have access to piped water either inside their dwellings, yards or community stands, as compared to only 20% in 1996.

Last year, the provincial government, in cooperation with the Water and Sanitation Minister Senzo Mchunu, launched the R106 million Din
okana Water Supply Intervention Project.

Maloyi said the North West was pushing ahead with the construction of a R36 million bulk water sewer pipeline at Agisanang township in the Tswaing Local Municipality is due for completion this year.

‘We can report to the people of Madibeng Local Municipality that the Brits Water Treatment Plant will be completed by May this year,’ he said.

The completion of this project is expected to bring an additional 20 mega-litres that will ensure the provision of water in Oukasi, Mothotlung, Damonsville, Mmankau, Brits, Elandsrand, Letlhabile and Sonop.

The pipeline from Mafenya to Tlhabane will be completed in April.

He told members that the 25 mega-litre Tlhabane reservoir is 99% complete and will be handed over within the next two weeks.

Meanwhile, additional boreholes have been drilled and equipped for both the Rooigrond Waste Water Treatment Plant and water augmentation project to address water provision challenges in Mahikeng.

‘The communities of Ramosadi and Sewedin
g in Mahikeng have for the past few months been subjected to inhumane sewer spillage in their households and locality.

‘We have intervened and a contractor has now returned to the site to complete the project of constructing a new pipeline to be delivered by Mahikeng Local Municipality and funded by Ngaka Modiri Molema District.’

Maloyi also confirmed that all water leaks at Tigane and Hartebeesfontein have been fixed and now there is a stable water supply.

The construction of the over R200 million water pipeline from Pudumoe to Huhudi began in September last year to improve the bulk water supply.

Source: South African Government News Agency

Acting North West Premier Nono Maloyi has during his State of the Province Address (SOPA) announced that the province has allocated R198 million to eradicate 1 356 mud houses.

The Acting Premier said on Tuesday that of these, 579 units have already been delivered.

Although there are still challenges, Maloyi said the province has experienced unprecedented levels of development in the last 30 years.

He told the provincial legislature that the number of households had increased from 591 145 in 1996 to over 1.14 million in 2022.

This means that 88% of houses in the North West are now considered formal housing.

‘Honourable Members, from 2019 to 2023, we have constructed 19 307 houses. By the end of 2023, we had delivered 2 768 houses,’ he told them.

In addition, he announced that the provincial government has now cleared all the hurdles that delayed the Deelpan floods project and reported that 104 houses will be completed at the end of next month.

The Acting Premier said 317 more houses would be built follo
wing the donation of land by Kgosi Kogodi Molete of Bakolobeng and his traditional council.

He was also looking forward to launching the R2.6 billion N14 mixed-use development project in Ventersdorp in the coming weeks.

The development will see the installation of bulk services for 400 sites and create over 600 jobs for locals.

‘The small town of Ventersdorp which comes from a bad history of occupation by a right-wing racist group called AWB will never be the same again. We are restoring the dignity of our people,’ he said.

Meanwhile, the integrated accelerated service delivery approach, Thuntsha Lerole Programme, has to date delivered 6 283 title deeds to beneficiaries across the four districts.

Water

In addition, over 80% of households in the province have access to piped water either inside their dwellings, yards or community stands, as compared to only 20% in 1996.

Last year, the provincial government, in cooperation with the Water and Sanitation Minister Senzo Mchunu, launched the R106 million Din
okana Water Supply Intervention Project.

Maloyi said the North West was pushing ahead with the construction of a R36 million bulk water sewer pipeline at Agisanang township in the Tswaing Local Municipality is due for completion this year.

‘We can report to the people of Madibeng Local Municipality that the Brits Water Treatment Plant will be completed by May this year,’ he said.

The completion of this project is expected to bring an additional 20 mega-litres that will ensure the provision of water in Oukasi, Mothotlung, Damonsville, Mmankau, Brits, Elandsrand, Letlhabile and Sonop.

The pipeline from Mafenya to Tlhabane will be completed in April.

He told members that the 25 mega-litre Tlhabane reservoir is 99% complete and will be handed over within the next two weeks.

Meanwhile, additional boreholes have been drilled and equipped for both the Rooigrond Waste Water Treatment Plant and water augmentation project to address water provision challenges in Mahikeng.

‘The communities of Ramosadi and Sewedin
g in Mahikeng have for the past few months been subjected to inhumane sewer spillage in their households and locality.

‘We have intervened and a contractor has now returned to the site to complete the project of constructing a new pipeline to be delivered by Mahikeng Local Municipality and funded by Ngaka Modiri Molema District.’

Maloyi also confirmed that all water leaks at Tigane and Hartebeesfontein have been fixed and now there is a stable water supply.

The construction of the over R200 million water pipeline from Pudumoe to Huhudi began in September last year to improve the bulk water supply.

Source: South African Government News Agency