Lolo Madonsela

Zululand improvement on the cards

Zululand District is one of many districts in the province which suffers with terrible road infrastructure, which at some point leads to road carnage.
This now may be the thing of the past however, as Vryheid, Ulundi and Pongola are among 61 ‘regional development anchor’ towns in South Africa which are set to get better roads and Internet connection through a Draft Spatial Development Plan.
Early this year, the National Spatial Development Framework (NSDF) published a plan for public comment, seeking to establish a network of regional development anchor towns in ‘productive rural areas’ which fulfil a regional function, and where growth should be encouraged.

Community has mixed feelings on this new development
Sibusiso Xaba commented, “For many years, we have been sending our plea to government to fix our roads. When it is rainy season, it becomes a struggle to access these roads. We really have not enjoyed any freedom because our Government keeps screwing us over. I really do not see this happening especially in our area. eMondlo is the worst, I can tell you that. Driving around is a pain because you have to negotiate the pits in the road. Driving out to Vryheid is not bliss either. Where have you ever seen a road sign that says ‘potholes: 10km’? Only in Vryheid! Money spent on putting that road sign up should have been used to fix the road instead. So to answer you, no, I am not excited about this dream they have of fixing our roads; things will still remain as they are.”
Conversely, Nozi Mazibuko said, “That is wonderful news, but when are they going to start with the work? I have been waiting for so long to have improved roads. We have potholes everywhere and they need to be fixed. This is a good initiative however, and we must put trust in our Government one more time and allow them to pull this off. Imagine how much improvement we will have in Vryheid should we have better, good quality roads? This will surely help us regain pride in our district, because people are even shy to say they come from Vryheid or Zululand, because we are like a forgotten region. I am really happy about this and I am looking forward to it.”

Better roads a tourism boost?
The development of road infrastructure in the district is believed to start attracting tourists to Northern KwaZulu-Natal, because there will be improved access to all tourist attractions.
The region boasts both private and public game reserves, such as the luxurious and Beyond Phinda Private Game Reserve and the Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Game Reserve, where tourists can spot the Big Five. There are also areas such as iSimangaliso Wetland Park, which was declared a World Heritage Site by the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organisation. NKZN is also home to historic battlefields of the Anglo-Boer War, including the Battle of Isandlwana and the Battle of Blood River.

Road construction will bring employment opportunities
Zululand District has a low rate of employment, which can be traced back to a lack of economic activities, poor economic infrastructure and a highly unskilled labour force in the area.
In 2017, Zululand’s formal employment figure was 78 848, while informal employment was 95 896 in the same year.
Unemployed resident, Thando Nkosi said, “These are the only times we get part-time employment; when there is construction in the area. Even though the politicians sometimes interfere by employing their cronies and families, we are hoping there will be enough employment for the youth once they start with construction of these roads.”

What does the NSDF look at?
· Urban regions, clusters and development corridors as engines of national transformation – to ensure and sustain national economic growth, drive inclusive economic development and derive maximum transformative benefit from urbanisation and urban living.
· Productive rural regions and regional development anchors as foundation of national transformation – to ensure national food security, rural transformation and rural enterprise development and quality of life in rural South Africa through a set of strong urban-rural-development anchors in functional regional-rural economies.
· National ecological infrastructure systems as enabling infrastructure for shared and sustainable resource foundation – to enable sustainable and just access to land and other national resources for quality livelihoods of current and future generations.
· National connectivity infrastructure networks as enabling infrastructure for a shared, sustainable and inclusive economy – to develop, expand and maintain a national transport, trade and communication network in support of supra-national, national, regional and local economic development.
· National social service infrastructure system as enabling infrastructure for national well-being – to ensure access for all to the benefits of high quality basic, social and economic services in a well-located system of vibrant rural service towns, acting as urban-rural anchors and rural-rural connectors.

Make sure you follow us on our social media platforms for regular updates