Minister Mondon satisfied with progress made on local projects |24 August 2018

Designated Minister Macsuzy Mondon has expressed her satisfaction at the progress made so far on six projects in the south of Mahé under the portfolio of the department of local government.

Minister Mondon visited the project sites yesterday accompanied by principal secretary for Local Government Marie-Celine Vidot, director of Project Planning and Maintenance Daniel Adeline as well representatives from the department of local government.

The aim of the visit was to assess the progress that has been made on these projects which started this year.

The visit started in Baie Lazare at the proposed site for a housing project.

Minister Mondon revealed that two houses have already been built on the site but that there are plans for 10 more to be constructed in the near future. Such houses will be allocated to families who are in desperate need due to their circumstances.

Priority will be reserved for families hailing from Baie Lazare but exceptions can be considered for others in dire need.

Negotiations with the Ministry of Habitat, Infrastructure and Land Transport (MHILT) will take place soon for the plot of land to be allocated for the construction of the 10 additional units.

An access road at Anse Aux Poules Bleues was the second stop on the minister’s visit. The project, which started earlier this year, has not been completed on account of problems with the contractors.

However, Minister Mondon reassured that the project will be considered a priority and that arrangements are well underway to find other contractors to complete it.

The tender process which takes 6-8 weeks will be started next week to allocate the project to contractors.

While a timeframe for the completion of the road has not been finalised yet, she stated that by the end of 2018 the department of local government expects the project to be underway.

She also revealed that two contractors will be allocated a portion of the project each so that the completion time can be minimised.

Following the visits to the two sites in Baie Lazare, the visit proceeded to the Anse Royale district administration where the minister revealed that she is satisfied with the renovations and arrangements made for the representative of the regional council who will be based there.

A second access road in Anse Royale was also visited by the delegation. Member of the National Assembly Sylvanne Lemiel joined the delegation for the visit.

The first phase of the road has already been completed and the second phase is set to start before the end of the year. This road will be used by more than 30 families in the community and will be especially useful to land owners who are planning to construct their dwellings as it will facilitate transport access.

The district of Cascade was the fourth project site. The delegation met with member of the National Assembly for Cascade Charles De Commarmond and architect Brian Changty-Seng to discuss the proposed plan for the district administration to replace the existing one which was partly destroyed by a fire.

Minister Mondon revealed that the proposed plan will be presented to the Development Committee in the coming days as well as other stakeholders to determine the feasibility of the plan and for the necessary arrangements to be made for construction.

The final site was the parking lot that has been completed next to Mont Fleuri school.

“We are satisfied with the work as it helps to provide parking for people who are visiting the shops and parents who wish to drop off or pick-up their children from school. It has also been useful in other senses as the traffic flows better,” she said.

Asked what challenges the department of local government faces with its projects, the minister said the main challenges are difficulties with contractors who sometimes do not honour their contracts.

She also added that members of the communities are often reluctant to cooperate with the government and government departments.

“I urge all members of the community to help each other and to always be thoughtful of our neighbours,” she added.

PS Vidot also expressed her satisfaction. “We are very satisfied with all the projects that we decided to implement this year,” she said.

The department of local government has a programme every year to implement projects in all districts across Mahé, Praslin and La Digue.

The accompanying photos show some highlights of the minister’s visit.