Residents of villages in the Niani area outside Musina in Limpopo have begun paving the D3917 road between Dambale and Manenzhe themselves.
The 13 kilometre gravel road, which links several villages, has been hampering economic activities and service delivery for years.
Community members bought building materials with their own money, while some were donated by local business people.
Residents say the access road that links Manenzhe, Bale and Dambale villages makes it difficult for motorists to commute on a daily basis. They also say its poor state discourages business activities.
Community leader Shadrack Phuravha says, “We saw many accidents happening up there and even here, they were big holes in such a way that some cars broke down. We decided to go out and look for donations so that we can put cement.”
Some community members say they are committed to the project. They say the paved road will provide them with easy access to their areas.
“We know this is not easy but ambulances use this road, sometimes they had to take longer routes to get to where the patient is. This is not right, people lose their lives. As youth, we came to help these old people to fix the road as you can see the road is prepared, not yet there but we tried with our power to help.”
In response, Public Works, Roads and Infrastructure Department spokesperson Witness Tiva says there are plans to build a new tarred road in the Niani area. Tiva says they have appointed a consultant to do designs for the road.
“We have a backlog of 13 000 kilometres of unpaved roads infrastructure, and this particular locality forms part of the kilometres that I have mentioned, and what we have done as a department is to appoint a consultant to do detailed designs for that particular road.”
VIDEO: Community members have resolved to complete the project
