It is time to rebuild Garden Route – Zille
Initiative formed to support fire-ravaged Knysna and Plettenberg Bay
LIVELIHOODS will be rebuilt along the Garden Route following last month’s devastating fires in Knysna and Plettenberg Bay, Premier Helen Zille has pledged. The Garden Route Rebuild Initiative, headed by Economic Opportunities MEC Alan Winde and co-ordinated by former local government departmental head Dr Hildegarde Fast, has been formed with Garden Route municipalities, community members and private sector donors to develop a rebuilding strategy for the area.
Winde and Fast are identifying where funds should be spent. Zille has earmarked R75 million for rebuilding in Knysna and storm-ravaged Cape Town.
The Garden Route, a tourism-intensive economic zone, lost business in the fires. Thirty B&Bs were destroyed.
“Now it is time to rebuild. I sent a team to the region a week ago to assess how best the province can assist further. It is clear the Garden Route requires significant support in the rebuilding process,” Zille said.
“I am establishing a Garden Route Rebuild Initiative, which will be responsible for co-ordinating all of the public and private initiatives in the region.
“In recovering from this terrible disaster, we have an opportunity to build a resilient economy, create more sustainable jobs and create a more united community.
“We can only do this if government, civil society and the private sector join forces to create a future for the Garden Route that is more prosperous than before.”
The initiative will provide building support and engage in humanitarian efforts, while skills initiatives will be launched to provide locals with training to apply for jobs on the building sites.
Zille said Winde’s team would be able to access additional support and resources from national and provincial departments when they join the teams established by the Knysna Municipality for rebuilding.
Peter Southey, owner of Bill Rawson Properties in Knysna said yesterday construction had been slow, and that insurance companies had paid out for goods lost in the blaze but not for the houses.