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The permanent delegates to the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) from the Northern Cape have accepted the assurance by the Northern Cape Provincial Government’s Department of Public Works that construction of the Kimberley Mental Health Hospital will be concluded by the end of 2017.

The NCOP and many Parliamentary Committees had previously highlighted Parliament’s dissatisfaction at the pace with which the construction of the hospital was proceeding. The delegation is reassured that work is proceeding at a reasonable pace and that all indications are that the hospital will be finished by December 2017.

The delegation has as a result of the reassurance requested the Department of Health to urgently submit a report on the occupation strategy. The delegation is of the view that the hospital must be used as soon as the construction is completed.

Despite this, the delegation hopes that the provincial government has learned valuable lessons which will come in handy going forward. “We do not expect such delays and utilisation of inadequate companies in future infrastructure developments. Furthermore, proper planning must always be the basis of any development which will insure that the fiscus is protected against over expenditure and unnecessary delays,” said Mr Raseriti Tau, the Deputy Chairperson of the NCOP.

The delegation is happy with the support given to the Rust and Vrede Farm and Caerwinning Farm in Francis Baard District by the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development. The delegation has requested that the department assists the farmers with access to water that was mentioned as a major challenge.

The delegation is concerned that while the Recapitalization and Development Programme has been moved from the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform and this has not been followed by budget to finance the programme. The delegation committed, through various Committees of the NCOP, to consider this anomaly in efforts to finding workable solutions.

The commitment by the MEC for Economic Development and Tourism to send a legal team to Barkly West Waste Recycling Cooperative to assist with removing beneficiaries that are not actively participating in the growth of the project was also welcomed by the delegation.

The delegation has committed to monitor implementation of commitments made by the provincial executive. 
 

Issued by Parliamentary Communication Services on behalf of the NCOP NC Provincial Delegation