“Intervention kills three birds with stone” – RESTORING DIGNITY, FIXING INFRASTRUCTURE WHILST SAVING WATER!
In a tripartite collaboration between the Kouga Windfarm Community Development Trust, the Kouga Local Municipality and the Department of Basic Education – Kouga District: A visionary initiative to mitigate against the impact of water shortage due to drought in the region, was launched this week, with the Kouga Windfarm Community Development Trust having committed to invest R3m towards the project.
According to the Kouga Local Municipal Manager, Charl du Plessis, a number of the schools in the district were high water users due to a number of reasons which included broken infrastructure, leaks and aging water systems in the schools. A priority for the Municipality was to reduce this high usage and allow the water to be redirected to other parts of the communities. After extensive consultations the three partners then appointed a service provider who has a track record of providing water and sanitation solutions in a number of schools across South Africa.
This multi-million-rand water and sanitization project is aimed at saving water and upgrading the dilapidated ablution facilities at the schools in the communities of kwaNomzamo, Kruisfontein, Arcadia and Oysterbay-Umzamowethu.
The General Manager of the Trust, Mr Prince Matonsi, said “The Kouga Windfarm Community Development Trust is very excited about this solution-oriented intervention that will see over 116 ablutions retrofitted in the four schools with water saving flushing systems and new infrastructure built where necessary. The solution will have a massive impact on water consumption levels but while also restoring dignity of our learners through the provision of modern toilet facilities and sanitation bins at identified schools. Skills transfer and job creation are also critical deliverables in this project for the Trust.”
A partnership meeting was held this week with the benefiting school principals, SGB representatives, Ward Councilors, Kouga Municipality and the District Department of Basic Education together with the service provider, Enviromould who has a significant eastern cape foot print. The engagement showcased the product experience, the scope of work, the commencement and completion date of this project per site. Enviromould, was identified as leaders in the field of sanitation solutions focusing on water saving. a key highlight is that local skills drawn from the four communities will be used throughout the project under the specialist supervision of Enviromould. In addition, the local labour will be trained on maintenance of the system while the school will also get a toolkit box to allow for these trained personnel to maintain the facilities.
The initiative integrates water backup solutions to the main system through the installation of several 2700l water tanks. The estimated savings in water usage by schools at completion of the project stands at approximately 50 000 liters a day which when compounded over months will be significant. The direct beneficiaries of the upgrade in ablution facilities are estimated at 7500 learners.
Charl du Plessis said in his message of support and appreciation. “The impact of this project is huge and appreciated by the Municipality as it will allow water to be diverted to other areas where water is needed. We encourage more stakeholders to offer more community focused interventions like this.”
Mr HN Godlo, District Director of Sarah Baartman, and Mr Garth Jacobs all from Kouga DBE, also submitted a letter of appreciation and acceptance of the programme and committed to ensure that the new infrastructure would be maintained and sanitary services sustained within all the schools supported.
Issued by: Kouga Windfarm Community Development Trust
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In the picture are KWFCDT General Manager, KLM Municipal Manager, DBE Kouga District Directors, KLM Ward Councilors & Four School Principals