City releases millions for Jozi@Work projects
19 November 2015
Small township businesses and co-operatives in Soweto were this week offered eight more work packages under the Jozi@Work programme, including one valued at more than R5-million announced by Johannesburg Water, the City of Johannesburg’s water and sanitation entity.
Jozi@Work, the brainchild of Executive Mayor Councillor Parks Tau, is a R3-billion initiative aimed at tackling three of the biggest challenges facing the city – unemployment, poverty and inequality. In the main, the programme seeks to turn job-seekers into job-creators by diverting municipal contracts that should ordinarily be executed by established companies to up-and-coming local service providers.
The eight work packages were presented to scores of township businesses and co-operatives registered under the mass empowerment and job-creation programme at two briefing sessions – one at Naledi Hall and the other at the Protea Glen Recreation Centre – in the City’s Region D. The R5-million Johannesburg Water work package requires suitably qualified contractors to undertake repairs and maintenance work on its water and sewer reticulation network in Region D. The work includes attending to burst water pipes and overflowing sewers, as well as leaking meter valves and water hydrants. The successful contractor will be obliged to use local labour.
The other seven work packages were issued by City entities such as City Power and Johannesburg City Parks & Zoo. City Power officials said they were on the lookout for contractors to maintain street lights and weld street light pole covers. The City’s power utility also requires the services of information technology and communication (ICT) companies, data capturers, environmental designs draftsmen and asset inventory data collectors.
Johannesburg City Parks & Zoo, on the other hand, seeks the services of contractors to undertake cleaning and maintenance work at various koppies in the township.
These include the Sontonga Koppie in Ward 46, Zondi Koppie and Chiawelo Koppie. These koppies encounter high volumes of ecological stress as communities use them as dumpsites for household waste and building rubble.
The closing date for the submission of expressions of interest for these work packages is Thursday November 26. The expression of interest forms should be hand delivered to the Jabulani Civic Centre in Jabulani, Soweto.