Programme Director
Premier of the North West Province: Ms Tandi Modise
MEC for Economic Development, Environment, Conservation and Tourism: Ms Motlalepula Rosho
MEC for Local Government: Mr Paul Sebego
Executive Mayor-Ngaka Modiri Molema District: Cllr Phaladi Saku
Executive Mayor-Mahikeng Local Municipality: Cllr Nomtsama Lenah Miga
Executive Mayor- Ramotshere Local Municipality: Cllr Alfred Tale
Executive Mayor- Ratlou Local Municipality: Cllr Victor Manse
Traditional leaders
Government officials
Members of the media
Ladies and gentlemen
Good Morning

It is with great pleasure to be part of this august occasion of the official handover of the North West Mahikeng Domestic Waste Collection pilot project. This handover is a great milestone and it further reiterates the significance and importance of integrated waste management.

We are gathered here today just seven days before Heritage Day. The month of September is commemorated annually as both Heritage and Tourism Month. Last week I visited Tshamutshedzi village in Limpopo, heeding a call by Khosi Vho Gole Mphaphuli and the community that they would like to embark on Water and Environment Conservation projects as part of the Heritage Month celebrations.

Our Constitution guarantees all citizens a right to an environment that is not harmful to their health and well-being and to have the environment protected for the benefit of present and future generations. In our efforts of giving effect to this right, South Africa ratified several multilateral environmental agreements, of which the Montreal Protocol on substances that deplete the ozone layer is one. On 16th September every year, parties to the Protocol celebrate the International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer.

The Waste Act was passed in July 2009 and seeks to combat problems around waste management by instituting mechanisms of waste avoidance, minimisation, recycling, reuse, recovery, appropriate collection, transport services and treatment and disposal systems that are environmentally sound. The Act aims to break new grounds in terms of implementing waste management policies and legislation.

Reduce, reuse and recycle have been identified as key concepts when it comes to waste management. Education and awareness campaigns around the importance of waste minimisation and how this can be achieved in households, as well as by industries and consumers is vital.

The waste sector offers great potential for job creation by extending waste services into areas that are currently unserviced and improve the waste collection systems in serviced areas.

While waste services remain an imperative of local government, support from the provinces and relevant national departments is vital in order for local government to further strengthen its capacity and accelerate service delivery in this area.

If waste services are left unlegislated and unregulated, it will work against all efforts to build an environmentally healthy society.

However, developing Waste Management policies, plans and programmes alone cannot be sufficient in our efforts to curb waste backlogs. There is a need to go beyond this.

It is for this reason that in the year 2007, research was undertaken in six Municipalities [Mbombela, Bushbuckridge, Emfuleni, Thulamela, Nkomazi and Mahikeng] to determine the feasibility of implementing the waste collection model. Mahikeng Local Municipality was chosen as the first beneficiary of the pilot project in 2007.

The Department through its Environmental Protection and Infrastructure Programme (EPIP) is funding the Domestic Waste Collection Pilot Project in Mahikeng Local Municipality.

The project has been under implementation since August 2009 and has come to an end in August 2012. Mahikeng Municipality and the Department entered into a Service Level Agreement (SLA) which outlines the obligations of both parties towards achieving the aims of the project.

The objectives of the pilot project are manifold and include the development of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) driven by labour intensive implementation model for Domestic Waste Collection with a view to later implement wider roll-out to other municipalities.

Other objectives are reducing waste backlog, create employment opportunities, involve local communities in cleaning their own areas and encourage the implementation of the 3 Rs of waste management, namely; reduction, reuse and recycling.

Five waste collection trucks were procured and five contractors appointed to use trucks for waste collection. A total of seventy (70) workers were further appointed to do actual waste collection from targeted households for the duration of the project. Each contractor was allocated 14 workers. Training was provided to both contractors and workers in order to capacitate them in areas of waste management and business management.

The waste collection service to 31 856 households has been carried out successfully and the recipients of the service are up to this stage more than satisfied with the frequency and quality of service provided.

Sustainable waste management practices also form part of the eight focus areas of the Green Economy Strategy. Based on the lessons learnt through the pilot project, the Department of Environmental Affairs aims to establish a model for municipal waste management that eradicates backlogs in service delivery in the rest of the country.

In conclusion, I would like to officially hand over the North West Mafikeng Domestic Waste Collection Pilot Project to Mahikeng Local Municipality. This project belongs to you now. Ensure that you guard jealously against anything or anyone that might seek to halt its progress.

I also would like to thank all stakeholders involved for the sterling work put in this project.

I thank you.