SPEECH (NOTES) BY KWAZULU-NATAL MEC FOR TRANSPORT, COMMUNITY SAFETY AND LIAISON MR. BHEKI CELE AT THE SOD-TURNING CEREMONY FOR THE WHITE UMFOLOZI RIVER BRIDGE HELD ON MONDAY, 7 FEBRUARY 2005.

All protocol observed.

• June 26th this year marks the 50th Anniversary of the adoption of the Freedom Charter.

• The Charter constitutes the programme of the people of our country for the creation of a truly democratic, non-racial, non-sexist, united and prosperous country.

• It guides us about the broad outcomes we must pursue to achieve the strategic goal we have set ourselves - to eradicate the legacy of racism, sexism, colonialism and apartheid.

• As President Thabo Mbeki has said, the democratic state must take the lead in the transformation of our economy away from the fetters of the past, which constrain growth and development.

• Among the mechanisms that the developmental state deploys to restore the national wealth of our country to the people are:

• Sustained and substantial investment in economic and social infrastructure, built with methods with a bias towards labour intensive technologies;

• Increasing the access of the masses of the people to physical resources, particularly land, housing and community infrastructure;

• Poverty reduction and eradication through job creation, skills development and budget interventions to increase the social wage, bearing in mind our limited means;

• Affirmative action, broad based black economic empowerment and other interventions designed to fast-track the inclusion of the previously marginalised in the mainstream economy and simultaneously transform the structure of the economy; and

• Ensuring the growth and development of our economy to provide the means to achieve the broad goals indicated by the Freedom Charter.

• To this end, transport has a critical role to play in ensuring that much needed infrastructure is provided in remote rural communities, and ensuring that jobs are created where they are needed most.

• The White uMfolozi River is one of the largest rivers in the province and is prone to regular flooding, especially during the summer months.

• There are no bridge crossings in the vicinity and the summer flooding puts the lives of many people, particularly learners, at high risk while crossing the river.

• The river can become extremely vicious and can rise several metres overnight. When in flood, the river can widen over 100 metres.

• Nomzimane High School is located approximately 1,5 kilometres north of the White uMfolozi River and the school has some 240 learners, of which more than 30 learners have to cross the White uMfolozi River on a daily basis.

• In order to cross the river, these learners (both male and female) often fully expose their body which is deeply humiliating. Their inability to cross during flooding is also disruptive to their schooling.

• During the course of our investigations, we noticed that local community members cross this river regularly. We have been informed that there are even paraplegics on the southern banks, who need to be carried across the river to get to the closest hospital, which is located to the north of the river.

• The necessity of the construction of this bridge has been highlighted for many decades, but was never regarded as a priority for the previous apartheid government.

• The current democratic government has adopted programmes that are responsive to the needs of communities, and is aimed at reversing the inequalities of the past.

• We are committed to developing a provincial road network that will link the various economic zones and nodal points. In this way, we want to develop a rural road network linking communities to social, local and regional amenities.

• Our national government and provincial government have jointly embarked on this project, and the construction of this Pedestrian Bridge will see an investment of more than R2 million in this area.

• There is no doubt that this bridge will go a long way to normalising schooling in the area, as well as creating job opportunities, and linking previously isolated communities.

• This project is another clear indication that our government is committed to not just building physical infrastructure, but to also build social bridges where none previously existed.

• In conclusion, as we enter the second decade of democracy, our critical challenge is to ensure that people are aware of the services and opportunities available to them, and are able to access them.

• One of the central tasks for the year ahead is to ensure that we increase the impact of government programmes on the lives of the poor, by bringing government closer to them and empowering them to act as agents of their own development.

I thank you.

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