uMngeni Local Municipality selected for national infrastructure pilot project

The uMngeni Local Municipality in KwaZulu-Natal is among three municipalities selected for a groundbreaking national infrastructure pilot project aimed at improving service delivery and cutting delays in infrastructure rollout.

Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Dean Macpherson on Friday signed Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with uMngeni in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands, Metsimaholo in the Free State, and Govan Mbeki in Mpumalanga as part of the pilot phase of the ‘Adopt-a-Municipality’ initiative.

The initiative, a first-of-its-kind, was adopted by the Presidential Infrastructure Coordinating Council last year and is spearheaded by Infrastructure South Africa (ISA). It aims to introduce rapid infrastructure interventions that will support municipalities in delivering better quality projects, completed on time and within budget.

Macpherson said the initiative is designed to address the persistent failures in municipal infrastructure delivery.

“The initiative will help us address the often checkered track record of infrastructure delivery at local government level across South Africa, to ensure effective spending of infrastructure budgets, that projects are properly prepared, that project cost overruns are avoided, and poor workmanship addressed,” he said.

“With this initiative, we are trying to change the narrative surrounding local government infrastructure projects and bring an end to the era of failing municipal infrastructure, as we see in many places across the country.”

Each MoU will be in effect for 24 months and outlines ISA’s involvement, which includes project planning, streamlining regulatory approvals, developing bankable business cases to attract funding, and establishing monitoring mechanisms to ensure accountability.

Macpherson said the department intends to replicate the model across the country. “While we are launching the project in three municipalities, we intend to replicate the model countrywide in the months and years ahead,” he said.

“This initiative will play an important role in achieving our goal of turning the country into a construction site with more infrastructure projects successfully executed to stimulate economic investment, grow the economy and, most importantly, create jobs.”

A digital dashboard will be developed on ISA’s website to allow mayors, officials, and the Minister to track progress and respond swiftly to problems.

“With the launch of the ‘Adopt-a-Municipality’ project, we are seeking to deliver tangible results from the policy interventions we have introduced since taking office, in order to meaningfully improve infrastructure delivery,” Macpherson added.

THE MERCURY