The signing of the MOUs follows a decision taken at the Presidential Infrastructure Coordinating Council to embark on this pilot project. Following a meeting late last year, the council had identified a number of priority areas, including the 19 Completed Strategic Integrated Projects valued at R26 billion ($1, 4 million) of those projects, 6 were in the transport sector, 3 in the water and sanitation sector, 1 in the energy sector, and the rest were in the human settlements and student accommodation sectors.

SA’s Minister of Public Works & Infrastructure, Dean Macpherson says his department has identified 24 projects valued at R3 billion ($164 million), beginning with the Metsimaholo Local Municipality in the Free State province, the uMngeni Local Municipality in the KwaZulu-Natal province, and the Govan Mbeki Local Municipality in the Mpumalanga province.

“We will be doing all of the preparatory work for them, we will be funding that ourselves and with technical partners. We will be absolutely hands on with the municipalities and their officials, so that we are able to skill them in how to bring these projects to fruition,” Macpherson said.

---SABC---