The Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) yesterday approved R128 million for humanitarian support in KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape, following the recent floods that devastated coastal communities.
The bank said the approved support would serve vulnerable communities, delivering much-needed support in water and sanitation services; adequate temporary housing; and much-needed roads infrastructure to enable mobility.
Key to the funding was the drive to help kickstart and amplify social and human activity, ensuring that citizens in these affected areas rebuilt their livelihoods.
Patrick Dlamini, chief executive of the DBSA, said: “We witnessed the devastation in the two provinces, and the follow-on impact to people’s lives of a complete stop to social and economic activity. We are hoping to help kickstart the rebuilding of our fellow citizens’ lives, and complementing the government’s ongoing disaster relief activities.”
In KwaZulu-Natal, the support would include replacement housing for displaced and vulnerable families; provision of clean water through the sinking of boreholes; water treatment packages; and water tankers; all worth more than R79m. In the Eastern Cape, the support would include water infrastructure; the provision of clean water; roads infrastructure; and replacement homes; all worth more than R49m
“Taking the lead in the implementation of these much-needed humanitarian interventions is the brank’s infrastructure delivery division. Working with them will be various teams of infrastructure development experts within the bank providing engineering, project management, quantity surveying and supply chain management support. Funding and payment approvals will be managed in-house, and paid according to completed milestones,” the DBSA said.
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