President Cyril Ramaphosa was on hand in Mpumalanga to hand over four more bridges in one of his government’s strategic integrated projects to local communities.
Central to the construction of the Welisizwe bridges is the SA Army Engineer Formation in the form of Dunnottar-based 1 Construction Regiment.
When Welisizwe Rural Bridges was introduced to Parliament four years ago the Sapper personnel contribution was given as “up to 50”. Between 60 and 90 locals are employed in each bridge built under the auspices of the Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) managed by the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI).
The ministers responsible for the Welisizwe project – Dean Macpherson (DPWI) and Angie Motshekga (Defence and Military Veterans) – were both on hand for the Mpumalanga handover on 11 December and a ceremonial first walk on one of the bridges with Ramaphosa.
The DPWI minister is reported by SANews as saying the commitment and technical expertise of the SANDF was “invaluable” during the Mpumalanga Welisizwe bridge build undertaken “often in challenging terrain and under tight deadlines”.
Notes used by the President when officiating at the handover in KwaMhlanga have it the construction method sees sturdy, safe and long-lasting structures. Elaborating, his speech writers name the Bailey bridge as a portable, prefabricated truss bridge constructed with timber and steel alloys, suspended on reinforced concrete which can be transported and assembled in “a matter of days”.
This was so in the early days of the Welisizwe project until the Sappers exhausted the supply of Bailey bridge components, the majority dating back to World War II. Since then local component manufacturers have been brought aboard to ensure sufficient components for the 90 bridge total estimate in Strategic Integrated Project (SIP) 25. To date Welisizwe bridges are positioned and providing access to healthcare, schools and other amenities for rural populations in the Eastern Cape, Free State, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, North West and now, Mpumalanga.
