22 May 2016

The Assistant Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Mr Frans Van Der Westhuizen, on May 20 performed the ground-breaking of the Economic Stimulus Programme (ESP) projects for the North East District in Masunga.

The assistant minister said the projects, which included construction of classroom blocks, school toilets as well teachers’ houses, would in addition to creating jobs, improve the general livelihoods of learners and all Batswana.

He explained that the projects that would be done at Masunga and Kalakamati primary schools, had been awarded to seven Batswana companies; two of which he stated, were youth-owned.

Mr Van Der Westhuizen appealed to those responsible to ensure the close monitoring of the projects to ensure that they were completed on time and within budget.

Addressing the contractors engaged for the projects, the assistant minister encouraged them to be diligent and produce quality work to prove that Batswana were capable of producing work of unquestionable quality.

Speaking at the same event, the North East District Council (NEDC) chairperson, Ms Florah Mpetsane also called for the timely completion of the projects.

She called on residents to help authorities keep an eye on the projects; advising them to alert the district leadership whenever they suspected that things were not moving in the right way.

Ms Mpetsane further cautioned the contractors awarded the projects not to be caught off-guard by incidences such as disruptions in water supply and bad state of roads in the district to affect their construction schedules.

She advised them to put measures in place to ensure that they were prepared to counter any challenges that might crop up.

Tati West Member of Parliament, Mr Biggie Butale thanked government for the introduction of ESP, saying the initiative would greatly help Batswana who had been struggling to find jobs to find means to survive.

He further noted that ESP projects would also help to bring key services closer to communities. ENDS