The City of Cape Town has signed a memorandum of agreement that paves the way for 337 temporary jobs in the Philippi area during the course of this financial year. The agreement will go a long way in assisting residents who are struggling with unemployment and the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The second phase of the countrywide Presidential Employment Stimulus Programme now extends to metro municipalities. The City is proud to announce that it has signed an implementation agreement with its implementing partner, the Philippi Economic Development Initiative (PEDI), to implement the Philippi Opportunity Area Regeneration Initiative over the next few months.
The initiative is funded by National Treasury via the Presidential Employment Programme (PEP) to the tune of R17,7 million in the current financial year ending 30 June 2022.
‘We are extremely excited about the possibilities and opportunities the funding and subsequent signing of the MOA will bring to the residents of Philippi. It is estimated that at least 337 temporary job opportunities will be created by the end of June next year. Our residents need jobs. With work comes dignity, improved living conditions and hope, and the signing of the MOA is paving the way,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Spatial Planning and Environment, Alderman Marian Nieuwoudt.
The project is one of 12 city-wide public employment projects that form part of this initiative.
The Philippi Opportunity Area (POA) is prioritised as a catalytic precinct and earmarked for significant future investment and development. The City’s Urban Catalytic Investment Department has developed a programme of initiatives and interventions, including a pipeline of infrastructure investment, to unlock economic opportunities among others, in the POA.
With the aid of grant funding a Precinct Management Unit (PMU) is already operating in Philippi, which is managed by PEDI, an NGO from the greater Philippi area, to assist with implementing basic urban management functions and initiatives.
The additional funding from the Presidential Employment Programme will assist to accelerate these efforts.
The new initiative will include 337 temporary employment opportunities, including:
- Cleaning of open spaces and stormwater facilities, along main routes, and clearing of illegal dumping
- Neighbourhood watch safety patrols in local ward areas
- Community art and place making initiatives such as murals and decorating of street furniture
- Street and neighbourhood naming initiatives
- Bush clearing and organic waste processing
- Compost manufacturing plant, packaging and distribution of products to a network of emerging farmers in the area
- Community liaison officers
The project will span over a period of eight months until 30 June 2022, with an option to extend, should more funding become available.
‘Work will be arranged in small teams and cover all the wards of Subcouncil 13 within the wider Philippi area. The project will be implemented in line with the City’s established Expanded Public Work Programme (EPWP) and procedures. Following the signing of the implementation agreement, the planning and recruitment for the initiative is now under way in earnest. In line with its urgency, the first work teams will hit the ground during next month,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Urban Management, Alderman Grant Twigg.
The project will provide some relief to the devastating economic impact of Covid-19. It is also designed to provide participants with vocational and life skills and prepare them for more formal and longer term employment opportunities, or even self-employment and entrepreneurship ventures in future.
‘By leveraging our established community networks and relationships, we are excited to partner with the City in this initiative. We are determined to make an impact on the current socio-economic circumstances, not only of the project participants, but also to benefit the wider Philippi community,’ said Thomas Swana, the CEO of PEDI.
Source: City Of Cape Town
