Alex Matlala

Alex Matlala

The Mopani district municipality in Limpopo has declared this financial year the year of service delivery.

Starting in July the municipality, regarded as one of the five poorest in the province, has vowed to deliver basic services to its constituency.

This weekend the municipality announced a R24million budget for bulk water supply to the nearly 120 000 people.

Municipal water project manager Aluwani Makadani said the money would be used to supply water to all villages in Sekororo and to build a purification plant at the Willows. He said on completion the project would benefit 33 villages.

In the past local residents were forced to use river water for their household needs. Those who could afford it sunk boreholes in their yards and sold water at exorbitant prices to the poor.

Municipal manager Refilwe Ramothwala said the project would create 120 jobs for locals. The purification plant would create another 30 jobs.

Gerald Komana, one of the villagers, could not hide his joy after the announcement.

"Having clean water in our yards has always been our dream."