Executive Mayor unveils another park in Soweto
03 September 2015
From now there won’t be any need for Soweto residents to drive all the way to Emmarentia Park to take wedding photographs as they could do so on their own doorstep.
This was said by Johannesburg Executive Mayor Clr Parks Tau as he officially opened a new recreational park in Meadowlands Zone 7, Soweto, on Wednesday September 2 amid a festival of activities during which he also planted a tree to mark the beginning of Arbor Month.
The new park’s official launch came a day after Johannesburg City Parks & Zoo planted 800 trees at Kanana Park with the assistance of community members, including learners, as part of the City’s Arbor Day celebrations. The City intends to plant more than 3 000 trees this month alone in line with its mission to create a green culture and improve the environment in Johannesburg.
The Meadowlands Zone 7 park – which has not yet been given an official name – boasts a large open area endowed with a lush lawn and trees, a mini soccer field, a braai area and a massive children’s playground.
The occasion was also attended by Member of the Mayoral Committee for Community Development Clr Chris Vondo, Johannesburg City Parks & Zoo Managing Director Bulumko Nelana, City officials, members of the local community as well as learners and educators from surrounding schools.
Clr Tau said the park would provide the residents of Soweto in general, and of Meadowlands in particular, with a venue to host social events on their doorstep.
“Wedding photos will now be taken here. There will now be no need for a drive to Emmarentia Park,” Clr Tau said.
The new park is a welcome addition to the growing portfolio of “green lungs” in Soweto that include Thokoza Park in Dlamini and Dorothy Nyembe Park in Dobsonville.
The Mayor said Meadowlands residents would soon have the opportunity to come up with a name for the park. Clr Tau also used the opportunity to announce innovations and projects the City had embarked on to alleviate unemployment among the youth and overcome the digital divide.
He said there were “about 800 000 unemployed youths in the City of Johannesburg”.
“Vulindlel’ eJozi is one such initiative that will help fight youth unemployment. The youth between the ages of 18 and 34 will get a chance to register on a mobi site to access employment opportunities. All they will need to do is to provide their ID numbers, gender, highest qualifications and any further skills acquired,” he explained.
On the digital front, the Mayor said the City was training “digital ambassadors” who would, on completion of their training, be sent on a door-to-door, house-to-house campaign to train residents on the use of computers and other technological gadgets.
He said the “massive digital literacy programme” would target the young and the old.
“A big number of our people still do not know how to access information from the internet. Gone are the days of the encyclopaedia. The information is now on our fingertips, on our tablets, on our laptops and on our cellphones. The internet is the most influential innovation in modern civilisation,” he said.
Gospel singer Thembisile Ntaka, winner of the 2003 Popstar reality show, provided the entertainment.