Government identifies 17 parcels of land for Covid-19 resettlement

© Matt Ragen – 123RF.com

“Of these, 13 land parcels are state-owned and four pieces of land parcels are privately owned. We have already started preparing some areas for resettlement,” minister of human settlements, water and sanitation Lindiwe Sisulu said.

Addressing a media briefing on Saturday, 28 March, in Tshwane, the minister said government has identified 29 densely populated informal settlements across the country.

“These informal settlements have a high propensity for the spread of Covid-19 and the spread could get out of control and we could find ourselves overwhelmed if we don’t do something as a matter of urgency. As such, we have decided that we need to resettle some of the residents to ease congestion,” Sisulu said.

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Water security

Sisulu called on on all water licence users to assist their nearby communities to refill the water tanks being used.

“Work with our local municipalities to ensure that we constantly have enough water in our tanks. While it remains our responsibility as government to provide basic services to our communities, the situation we currently find ourselves in calls for us to do things differently,” she said.

The minister urged borehole drilling companies across the country to extend a helping hand to communities who are in desperate need of water.

Municipalities have been requested to take full responsibility of taking care of water tanks.