FED up with waiting for the assistance of the municipality, the residents of the Kwa-Matambo Informal Settlement just outside Durban North have begun to improve their own living conditions.
During the last two weeks, 10 residents have been working tirelessly to rebuild the 40 shacks that burned to the ground during a recent fire and left hundreds homeless.
Left only with the clothes on their backs, the locals managed to scrape together 20 per cent of the funds needed to start the construction process, said Ndodeni Dengo, community representative.
As the funds were not enough to purchase the materials or hire the equipment needed for the project, the community has been forced to rely on the shelter provided by the city’s Disaster Management Unit.
However, through a donation from the SA Shack / Slum Dwellers International (SDI) Alliance, the community was recently able to start the project.
The feeling of renewed hope and camaraderie was obvious at the site on Old North Coast Road as three individuals from a neighboring settlement in Greenwood Park helped in the rebuilding process.
Another two experts from the Cape Town branch of the SA SDI Alliance were also providing assistance.
What’s more, they have begun implementing a new ‘re-blocking system’ at the settlement, which will ‘open up the spaces’ between the shacks so that they are no longer connected – making the settlement easier to evacuate in the event of a fire. Also planned in the new project are proper drainage systems and ablution facilities.
The project will take another week or two to complete.
