Families displaced by the floods could soon have new homes after the eThekwini Municipality secured several sites for the construction of their permanent housing.
During a media briefing on Thursday, Mayor Cyril Xaba announced that the municipality has secured six sites.
“You will recall that when we finalised the relocation of 2022 flood victims from 110 mass care centres to family-friendly accommodation, we committed to identifying sites for the building of permanent houses,” Xaba stated.
“The city has finalised this process, and planning approvals have been granted for six sites that can accommodate all families currently in Temporary Emergency Accommodation in eThekwini. The sites are shovel-ready for the province to commence with the building of permanent structures,” said the mayor.
Additionally, Xaba highlighted that the municipality has spent the disaster recovery grant of R1.2 billion. This grant was allocated by the National Government to repair road and stormwater infrastructure damaged during the 2022 floods. The city is also the leading metro in the country regarding the spending of the Urban Settlement Development Grant.
“Moving forward, we have developed a clear programme of action to tackle the service delivery challenges confronting our city. While a lot of progress is being made, we are aware of the mammoth task to make the city work for its residents. The work of building a city of our dreams can be achieved if we all put our shoulders to the wheel. Therefore, we call upon all stakeholders to join us in moving eThekwini forward,” he concluded.
The Mercury