Final Kwanda imbizo takes place in Tjakastad, Mpumalanga – Tuesday, 29 April 2014

The final Kwanda imbizo will take place this Tuesday 29 April at the Tjakastaad Sports Ground (next to tennis court) in the Chief Albert Luthuli Municipality, in Tjakastaad, Mpumalanga. Kwanda is a groundbreaking community development initiative aimed mobilising communities to collectively transform their communities. The fifth and final imbizo is part of a series of Imbizo’s taking place in Kwanda communities around the country. The five communities are Lephepane in Limpopo, Kwakwatsi in the Free State, Pefferville in the Eastern Cape, uMthwalume in KwaZulu Natal and Tjakastad in Mpumalanga. This final imbizo will showcase developmental strides made and the road ahead for the Similesonkhe Kwanda Project, Tjakastad.

Launched in an innovative community makeover television show as a 13 part series on SABC in 2009, the Kwanda programme has expanded to find ways to intensify social, human, economic and environmental capital development locally. The programme works towards enabling communities to address their own socio-economic challenges through engaging and enlisting various structures more effectively, including government and business.

The key outcome as articulated in the re-invigoration workshops is to ensure that the Kwanda programme is embedded in Developmental Priorities of Government (nationally and provincially), within the National Development Plan (NDP) and Integrated Development Plan’s (IDP’s). To this end the five Kwanda communities have initiated the “Kwanda Communities Imbizo” to be hosted by the Kwanda Teams at their local communities between March and April 2014. Through these Imbizo’s the communities seek to attract partnerships from various public and private bodies towards their developmental goals.

The objectives of the Imbizo’s are as follows:

• To raise awareness and educate communities on the programmes available from the Departments of Social Development, Health, Education, Trade and Industry and to hear from the community how these programmes can be improved to make them more responsive to community needs
• To interact with the community on the delivery of social services, convey various health and economic development services aimed at achieving sustainable livelihoods to the communities in partnership with public and private stakeholders
• To engage further on how communities can – work better, look better and feel better
• To create a platform for networking, development and support opportunities

If you are a resident, social or commercial partner of Tjakastad, be at the Tjakastad Sports Ground (next to tennis court) in the Chief Albert Luthuli Municipality, Mpumalanga from 9:00am on Tuesday 29 April.  Kwanda is delivered in a partnership between the Department of Social Development, Soul City Institute and Seriti Institute.