uMfolozi Municipality Holds Ceremony to Close Child Protection Week
uMfolozi Municipality hosted the Department of Social Development led by Honourable Minister Lindiwe Zulu at Nhlabane Sportsfield for a closing ceremony of Child Protection Week.
Local communities and parents were urged to play an active role in the education and protection of children as the Department held community dialogues with community members,
with a strong focus on teenage pregnancy and finding solutions to end the scourge.
According to the Department of Health’s National Adolescent and Youth Health Policy, 269 girls aged between 10 and 14 years in KwaZulu-Natal gave birth in 2011.
During the dialogue, teen mothers opened up and informed the discussion that some of the causes of teenage pregnancy include poverty, cultural and family practices, peer pressure, and lack of respect towards parents.
Minister Zulu said teenage pregnancy has, and remains, a serious developmental challenge as it jeopardises the health and educational outcome of the girl child.
“Early pregnancy is the primary cause of school dropouts, which results in poverty cycles and many young girls being stigmatised by society for being teenage mothers, or even being forced into early marriage; this needs to stop,” said the Minister.
Lack of knowledge as no one in the family gives them enough information on sex, which allows them to learn everything from their friends, empty promises from their partners, absent parents, lack of love from home and behavioural problems were also identified as key challenges facing teen mothers.
His Worship the Mayor Cllr XM Bhengu reminded the community that children are a “gift from God who should always be loved and protected.”
He further urged the parents and guardians to open up the channels of communication between themselves and their children to prevent teen pregnancies.
The Mayor further said the responsibility of raising a child is that of both the mother and father and therefore both parents must take charge in protecting and raining the girl child.
uMfolozi Municipality to Prioritise Local Artists, says Mayor Xolani Bhengu
His Worship the Mayor Cllr X.M Bhengu said uMfolozi Municipality will prioritise local artists when hosting municipal events.
His Worship said this at an Artist’s Capacity Building Workshop held at the uMfolozi Municipal Hall.
Detailing the municipality’s plan to assist local artists, Mayor Bhengu said Council wants all residents in uMfolozi to be included in the running of their municipality, therefore, a decision was taken to not exclude up-and-coming artists in uMfolozi.
“We are doing exactly what we promised during our election campaign. Our decision shows that we trust the capability of our own and also encourage the growth of the talent of our very own artists.”
Mayor Bhengu further said the municipality’s desire to develop and support local artists was evident while hosting the Integrated Development Plan (IDP) and Budget roadshows.
“During the roadshows, we prioritised local artists to show our support in practice and we have set aside a budget of R860 000 for future arts and culture programmes in the municipality.”
Reggae artist Mr Nhlanhla ‘King Bulawayo’ Khumalo from KwaSokhulu said the workshop will have a positive impact on them as young, up-and-coming artists.
“I look forward to seeing the teachings of the workshop being implemented accordingly by the uMfolozi Municipality as promised,” said Mr Khumalo.
The Department of Arts and culture, Recording Industry of South Africa RISA, and the KZN United Music Industry Association KUMISA were also part of the workshop.
Dondotha Community Welcomes Awareness Clean-Up Campaign
uMfolozi Municipality in partnership with King Cetshwayo District Municipality, KZN Department of Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs, aQuelle and SAPPI embarked on an environmental awareness and clean-up campaign in Dondotha Ward 9 under the theme #OnlyOneEarth, calling for collective, transformative action on a global scale to celebrate, protect and restore our planet.
His Worship Mayor Cllr X.M Bhengu stated that it is important to educate the community on the importance of environmental cleanliness.
“We need to keep the communities in which we live in clean and it cannot be easy for anyone to destroy them. We know that here in Dondotha they are many elderly people who are informal traders; we urge them to clean up after themselves however, as the municipality we will also have a programme in place to assist them to clean up the environment they use.”
Mr Sibongiseni Khumalo from aQuelle echoed Mayor Bhengu’s sentiment and said it is important to educate the community on the importance of recycling which can also be made to generate a small income.
The community welcomed the programme as it regenerated their community.
Community residents Mr Clement Bhengu said they welcome the intervention from the Mayor and stakeholders, “We are happy that Mayor Bhengu together with other stakeholders is here to clean up our community and to educate us, we hope that this programme continues,” said Mr Bhengu.
Speaker Mthiyane holds Community Engagement Meetings with Ward 3 Residents
His Worship the Mayor Cllr X.M. Bhengu accompanied by Eskom officials held an engagement meeting with the Ward 12 community in Efuyeni to tackle community concerns and find solutions on the malfunctioning transformer.
Concerns raised in the meeting included the non-payment of electricity and illegal connections which contribute to the transformers exploding. The explosions left many residents without electricity for an extended period of time.
The community expressed gratitude to His Worship Mayor Bhengu for his intervention and for engaging with them regarding the electricity crisis in the area.
Mayor X.M. Bhengu Concludes 2022/23 IDP and Budget Roadshows
His Worship the Mayor Cllr X.M Bhengu presented the Integrated Development Plan (IDP) and 2022/23 Budget at the final roadshow for the 2022/23 financial year.
The roadshow was held at the Dondotha Stadium and included the communities of Ward 2, 7, 8, 9 and 10.
The roadshows provide an engagement space with different community stakeholders who are an integral part of the uMfolozi Municipality.
The stakeholders have an opportunity to be a part of the municipality’s process in the development of the IDP and the municipality to provide feedback on the various programmes to be included in the IDP.
During his address, His Worship the Mayor Cllr Bhengu said the majority of the funds for this financial year have been put aside to develop and maintain infrastructure throughout uMfolozi, which includes access roads to rural communities.
“By government laws, we visit communities and amaKhosi so that they too can participate in this budget. It brings us joy that we have been warmly welcomed by the community as we embarked on the roadshows throughout uMfolozi,” said Mayor Bhengu.
His Worship further encouraged the community to always be vocal about issues that affect them when it comes to lack of service delivery.
The budget presented by Mayor Bhengu for the 2022/23 financial year was R240 million.
Miss uMfolozi Shines at King Cetshwayo Beauty Pageant
The first annual horse-riding event named the King Cetshwayo June was hosted by the King Cetshwayo District Municipality and kicked off Friday, 24 June with a parade, car racing and Beauty Pageant and concluded Saturday, 25 June 2022 with horse racing and music festival.
UMfolozi Municipality’s very own Kim Biyela placed 1st Princess at the Mr and Miss King Cetshwayo event.
His Worship the Mayor Cllr X.M Bhengu said the municipality was proud of Kim as she is a smart young lady with a bright future ahead.
The King Cetshwayo June is aimed at celebrating the legacy of His Majesty King Cetshwayo kaMpande, after whom the district municipality is named while promoting and preserving the tradition of the Zulu nation through indigenous horse riding.
The two-day spectacular is expected to have a far-reaching impact on the local economy, spanning the sports, entertainment, fashion, small business, accommodation and retail sectors in the district.
Kim Biyela and Spha Xulu Crowned Mr and Miss uMfolozi 2022
uMfolozi Municipality held its first Mr and Miss uMfolozi 2022 at uMfolozi Municipal Hall to empower the youth of uMfolozi and to help them develop the confidence they need to face the world and achieve their dreams.
Young men and women from all wards in uMfolozi flocked to the audition venue competing not only just for beauty and glamour but looking to walk in the same footsteps as uMfolozi native and 2021 Miss South Africa Lalela Mswane who previously challenged the youth in her home town to embrace their power to make a real change in their local communities through youth and community advocacy.
His Worship the Mayor Cllr X.M. Bhengu thanked the parents and guardians for allowing their children to follow their dreams.
“Reading and learning are important, however, young people need practical programmes that encourage them to continue following their dreams while they are still at school,” said the Mayor.
The winners for the 2022 Mr and Miss uMfolozi have progressed to compete in the 2022 Mr and Miss King Cetshwayo pageant are as follows:
Miss uMfolozi Municipality 2022: Kim Biyela
1st Runner up: Bongiwe Mthembu
2nd Runner up: Nomcebo Bila
Mr uMfolozi Municipality 2022: Spha Xulu
1st Runner up: Thabiso Mthembu
2nd Runner up: Zakhele Motloung
uMfolozi Municipality on a Mission to Restore Access Roads
His Worship, the Mayor Cllr X.M Bhengu held a Sod-Turning Ceremony to restore the Ndlabeyilandula Access Road which will be 3.4 KM long.
The restoration of access roads in rural communities is an essential part of opening up community access for rural residents. Roads are an indispensable part of the community and are key to safe education, health services and other social services needed in any society that wants to succeed.
His Worship the Mayor Cllr Bhengu said the construction of the road will benefit various sectors of the community.
“This road will facilitate easy access to schools for teachers and learners as well as make it easier to deliver services to the people. We are also currently in the process of repairing
flood-damaged roads, especially in rural areas, so that our residents can use them without any problems on their way to or from home,” said His Worship.
Mayor Bhengu further said access roads will also help to boost the local economy as they will provide easier access for people and society at large, and there will be temporary employment opportunities as the roads are being constructed.
The Sod was also previously turned for a 2KM Mdladla Access Road in Ward 18, 2.9 KM Bumbaneni Access Road in Ward 7 and 3 KM Zilahlale Phase 2 Access Road in Ward 10.