MEC Nkonyeni Visits Women in the Rural Outskirts of Kokstad
Story & Pictures by Sibongile Dlangalala
Above: MEC Peggy Nkonyeni addressing the community at New Market Primary School, Kokstad
On 28 August 2019 the entire KwaZulu-Natal cabinet paid a visit to the Greater Kokstad Municipality as part of the Operation Sukuma Sakhe (OSS) initiative. MEC for Human Settlements and Public Works Ms. Peggy Nkonyeni was deployed at Ward 6, where she visited two projects and engaged with the community. As Women’s Month commemoration draws to a close, it seemed fit for Ms. Nkonyeni to interact mainly with women. Amongst them were women’s cooperative which is actively involved in farming, harvesting and sale of acquired produce. MEC also went to visit a pilot housing project where the majority of beneficiaries are women.
Left: MEC Peggy Nkonyeni with members of the Thuthuka Ngele Agricultural Cooperative. Right: MEC Peggy Nkonyeni visiting
Nokwanda Ngqewe a beneficiary from the Foles Hill Farm Pilot Housing project
MEC Nkonyeni’s first project visit was at Ingeli Philamntwana Centre, accompanied by Councillor Karen Walker, the Greater Kokstad Municipality Deputy Mayor and HOD Champion, Ms Thando Tubane. Ms Nkonyeni engaged with women who are part of Thuthuka Ngele Agricultural Cooperative from Ward 6. These are a formidable team of who have pooled their resources with the support from government to farm vegetables. The initiative has been successful and MEC Nkonyeni commended the positive efforts by the women. They have immensely contributed towards sustainability and economic development their community and area and such progress continue paving the way for food security and rural development
Left: Ward six Councillor Ntombikhona Mfukuli. Right: community members from ward six Greater Kokstad Local Municipality
Second stop was at the Foles Hill Farm Pilot Housing project. Construction work has begun with
foundations phase completed. MEC Nkonyeni managed to visit Nokwanda Ngqewe, who is one of the
beneficiaries of the pilot project. According to Nokwanda, her family has lived on the farm for over a
century and has thus become a permanent home to them. She expressed her happiness and wished
the project would become a success because it alleviate the hardships of life where after her disabled
brother will for the first time live in a decent and dignified home.
The final visit was at New Market Primary School where Ms Nkonyeni engaged and interacted with the
community. People raised their basic needs such as water supply, electricity shortage and affordable
housing. In her procedural response, MEC assured the community that their concerns and requests will
be tabled at the Provincial Cabinet where interventions and solutions will be devised. She also pleaded
with the community to work together with government in fighting poverty. “If the government give
people a farm, it is the people’s responsibility to get something out from the land. People should farm
because no one will ever go hungry for as long as people focus on farming,” she stressed.
It was indeed another successful Operation Sukuma Sakhe where government continues to ensure
service delivery in a more integrated way in partnership with communities.