Blantyre District Council approves new development plans

Acting Director of Planning & Development, Melayi Mhone

* The socio-economic profile highlights the gaps which we have in the district

* The district development plan highlights projects that we want to be implemented to cover those gaps

By Chilungamo Missi, MANA

Blantyre District Council on Friday approved new district development plan (DDP) and socio-economic profile (SEP), which are its development roadmaps to be used till 2030.

The approval was made during an extraordinary full Council meeting held at Golden Peacock Hotel in Blantyre, and speaking during the meeting the Council’s acting Director of Planning & Development, Melayi Mhone called on investors and well-wishers to invest in the district, saying it is their wish to reduce poverty levels among its residents.

“The SEP highlights the gaps which we have in the district; the DDP highlights projects that we want to be implemented to cover those gaps so that by 2030 Blantyre should be at a level that everyone is much better than they are now.

“We believe that the strategies which we have put in place will enable partners and investors to come in and help,” Mhone said.

On his part, Council chairperson, Mike Malikita underscored the importance of the two documents, saying they will act as guidelines as the council is undertaking future crucial development activities.

“When making these plans, we think about the future, including environmental changes, and this helps to visualize what you want your area to look like in the next five or six years.

“We spend a lot of money in drilling boreholes every year which after some time start malfunctioning; this SEP and DDP have plans to start installing water systems that are sustainable,” Malikita said.

Taking her turn, Chilaweni Ward Councilor, Carol Mdala urged the Council to ensure the SEP and DDP have been disseminated to the public to ensure that people fully understand them and fully take part in the development of the district as guided by the two documents.

The Local Government Act of 1998 mandates Councils in the country to formulate DDPs as a blueprint for poverty reduction.

Meanwhile, residents of Nancholi Township in Blantyre City have hailed government for upgrading the road from Manase Police Unit to Zalala which was in a bad shape for some years littered with deep potholes.

The communities say they now travel comfortably in minibuses especially when passing through the stretch from Manase Police Unit to Zalala where the road has been reshaped and graded.

In an interview with Malawi News Agency (MANA) on Thursday in Blantyre, one of the motorists from Manase Township, Blessings Saka, 41 expressed his satisfaction with the contractor for making the road wider.

“We are able to overtake other vehicles easily now than it was before because of the upgrade,” he said. “Other people travelling in minibuses and private vehicles are also moving comfortably.”

Saka pleaded with the government to extend the upgrading of the road to Nancholi Market, noting that the stretch from Zalala to Nancholi Market equally deserved a facelift to the standard of tarmac with a good drainage system.

Blantyre City Council public relations officer, Deborah Elliot said the road was part of the routine maintenance works they are carrying out.

“Currently, the road project will end at Zalala due to financial constraints but the plan is to take it to Nancholi Primary School and it will not be an asphalt road, it is just reshaping with some gravelling where necessary and this will be done before the rain starts,” she said.

Elliot dismissed rumors making rounds to the effect that the road was being financed by some individuals in the area, saying the Council was independently funding the project, saying: “Residents of the city will see such works in most areas before the rains start.”

The Nancholi Road, a distance of 5kms stretches from the Blantyre- Chikwawa M1 Road to Nancholi Primary School and the newly-constructed Nancholi Community Hospital, among other social amenities.