Norma Naude urged all stakeholders to make sure that there's no nepotism.
Noordgesig residents got a chance to add their voices on the Social Cluster Project which is set to give their area a facelift in the near future.
This happened at a community meeting which was held at the community centre on Monday. The Social Cluster Project is a City of Johannesburg initiative aimed at improving service delivery in the area.
As part of the project, the library will be rebuilt and be much bigger and even better. The community hall and the park have not been left out as they will be getting a revamp as well.
The meeting was well attended by Noordgesig residents
Noordgesig has been isolated from Soweto for many years and this project is set to change all that with improved accessibility into the area.
“This project was identified by the City of Joburg and once it’s done we are going to have a double story library. This whole area including the swimming pool and the sports ground is going to be improved,” said Ward 29 councillor Brenda Dammie after the meeting.
What makes this project even more exciting is that the people have been on board since its initiation.
The Joburg Development Agency has been hosting road shows since the begging of the year which were a platform for residents to have their input on how the proposed developments should be implemented.
Residents are not only involved in terms of expressing their views but there are a lot of benefits coming their way.
All stakeholders agreed that residents of Ward 29 should be prioritised in terms of skilled and unskilled labour.
One resident Norma Naude urged the developers to make sure that women equally benefit from the project.
“There should be equal opportunities for everyone from Ward 29. By that, I mean women should not be excluded. Men should not think that as women we cannot carry bricks because we can,” she said to loud applause.
The councillor shared the same sentiment with Naude saying that she will make sure that everyone from Ward 29 including SMMEs benefits.
“There were challenges with the clinic which is currently being built. I was not here when that project started but now I’m here and I’m hands-on.
“I will be monitoring everything and making sure that the community of Ward 29 benefits from this,” said councillor Dammie.
Councillor Brenda Dammie assured residents that everyone will benefit from the project including women.
According to estimations by the developers, the actual building project should kick off early next year. In the meantime, they are still working on the plan to relocate the library to make way for the construction of the new one.
The tendering process for the project will start soon and applications for the position of Community Liaison Officer (CLO) are open.
For more info visit their Facebook page Noordgesig Social Cluster Project.