Africa-Press – Botswana. Moshupa District Council is still in the process of constructing projects that were supposed to be completed during the 2022/23 financial year.
During the official opening of the district council’s full session this week, the district council chairperson, Mr Sonny Phiri, said the district was falling behind in building infrastructure aimed at generating income, employment, shelter, security, education, transportation, communication and more.
Mr Phiri expressed concern that failure to deliver projects on time and within budget would impede the council’s transformation into a knowledge-based economy.
This transformation, he said served as one of the pillars of the mindset change and the Reset Agenda.
“We should consider changing the way we have been doing things and strive for improvement,” he said, saying that transformation was a crucial aspect of the Reset Agenda.
Mr Phiri said the council would engage village leaders in the utilisation of the Pitseng and Manyana service centers. This would bring essential services closer to the people, as these leaders are seen as the authority closest to the community, he said.
Regarding the mindset change initiative, Mr Phiri revealed that workshops had been held to discuss the concept of change. Community members were engaged in understanding the importance of creating a high-performance culture. The aim, he said was to ultimately have a globally competitive, prosperous, and proud nation.
Mr Phiri further highlighted economic development as one of the council’s priority areas to facilitate rapid, inclusive, and sustainable economic growth.
He explained that the local economic development model would enable stakeholders to identify their needs, resource endowments, and take collective action to diversify and expand the local economy. In addition, he said training initiatives would be implemented, beginning with district development committee members.
He also said infrastructure provision was a critical aspect of good governance because it ensured the sustainable growth and development of the district.
Thus, he said they have consulted with all their stakeholders to prioritise infrastructure requirements in their respective areas. As for the district’s achievements, Mr Phiri noted the successful upgrade of health posts to clinics in Sesung, Pitseng, Moshupa, and Manyana.
These projects have been handed over to health officials. He also mentioned that Moshupa Primary Hospital and staff houses have been handed over to the Ministry of Health for occupation and are currently at 93 per cent completion. The progress report for the primary hospital stands at 76 per cent , while the recruitment of manpower and procurement of medical equipment and furniture were ongoing.
Mr Phiri informed the councillors that the district had received new projects, including the maintenance of the Mosope Bridge and the resealing of the road from Kanye-Moshupa turnoff.
These projects are expected to be completed by March 2024, he said.
He further said ongoing projects such as destitute housing, orphan care, backlog eradication, primary school maintenance, Ranoi Primary School, Ipelegeng skills development, and road maintenance. Mr Phiri disclosed that Moshupa Senior Secondary School has been allocated P16 million for major maintenance, which would be divided into two phases and the tender has been awarded to local companies.
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