E800 000 footbridge for Ekuvinjelweni
EKUVINJELWENI – A new footbridge worth over E800 000 is in the pipeline at Ekuvinjelweni.
Residents of Ekuvinjelweni under Nkhaba Inkhundla said they could not wait any longer for the completion of the Kanabodali Suspended Footbridge, which will make movement easy for them.
The residents said due to the unavailability of the footbridge in the past years, seven people, more especially children, drowned while trying to cross Mkhomati River during rainy seasons.
Microprojects in collaboration with Engineers in Action, an American-based organisation has already started constructing the 97 metres Kanabodali Suspended Footbridge worth E886 506. 70. Which is expected to be completed soon.
Over 1 500 community members are expected to be beneficiaries of the footbridge.
Mduduzi Mdluli, Community Development Officer from Microprojects pointed out that the members of the Engineer in Action came with technical and relevant skills to ensure that the footbridge was of high quality.
Mdluli mentioned that the construction of the footbridge started on February 5, 2024 and would be completed very soon.
He said they hired a bricklayer or mason instead of a contractor to do the whole job.
He said since the construction of the footbridge started, community members had been working hard to see to it that the project was completed.
Crossing
The community development officer said children, together with the old people within and neighbouring places had been crossing the Mkhomati River during rainy seasons and in the process, exposing themselves to dangers of being swept away by the floods.
He said community members did not contribute any cent towards the construction of the footbridge.
‘The community helps in gathering the required stones, collecting sand and assisting the mason. We are here to help them build their own footbridge,” said Mdluli.
Meanwhile, Samkeliso Dlamini, the Chairman of Kanabodali Suspended Footbridge project said for the past years, they had been having difficulties in travelling from one area to the other, especially during rainy seasons.
The chairman also highlighted that their children had to stop going to school after the rain in fear of losing their lives.
“We thank Microprojects for assisting us financially towards the construction of the footbridge. We lost seven people as a result of drowning,” he said.
Dlamini said weekly operations (Monday to Friday) start from 8am until 4pm. He said community members were coming forth to support the ongoing project.
Also, Mfanzile Phesheya Motsa, the Vice Chairman of the Kanabodali Suspended Footbridge project, said people would now be able to go to the royal kraal at any point in time without a struggle.
On another note, Mangisi Sifundza, the meson promised the community that the footbridge construction would be done in three weeks’ time, starting today. Sifundza stated that over 75 residents come forth and assist in the footbridge construction every week.