| R70m needed to finish stadium - 18/09/2008 |
Construction work on the 2010 stadium in Mthatha could be in jeopardy as R70m is needed before the end of this month to ensure its completion. This emerged at a meeting with stakeholders in Mthatha , chaired by Eastern Cape Department of Sports, Recreation, Arts and Culture MEC Noxolo Abraham-Ntantiso. In the current financial year the project needs R170m, while the provincial government has set aside only R100m. The Daily Dispatch reports that the construction of the stadium, including the construction of an athletics truck around the pitch, will cost the provincial government R604m. The support infrastructure, which includes the upgrading of Mthatha Airport, the rehabilitation and upgrading of roads and streets and the Holiday Inn Garden Court, is expected to cost R1billion. This will bring the budget for the stadium to R1.6bn . Currently, R70m is needed to ensure that Mthatha’s dream to be a “base camp” for the 2010 World Cup comes true.
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Full Daily Dispatch report
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| Stadium builders under pressure - 17/09/2008 |
Fezile Dabi Municipality is working around the clock to ensure that the new multipurpose sports centre in Tumahole will be completed in time for the final 2010 World Cup draw. Jonas Ramokhoase, Fezile Dabi mayor, was speaking at the sod turning ceremony, which was also attended by Local Organising Committee chairman Irvin Khoza. The Sowetan reports that Ramokhoase took Khoza through the process of constructing the sports centre, which is being built on the site of the stadium – right behind Phehellang Secondary and Selogilwe and Sindekile Primary schools. The stadium will have a 15 000 seating capacity. The municipality and SAFA also plan to use it to host some of the international games. Ramokhoase said the Free State, Fezile Dabi and Ngwathe municipalities have contributed R85m towards the construction of the stadium.
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Full report in The Sowetan
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| Soccer City gets the thumbs-up - 16/09/2008 |
FIFA president, Sepp Blatter, gave a thumbs-up to South Africa’s preparations for the 2010 World Cup finals when he visited Soccer City. Blatter, who is in the country on a four-day fact-finding mission, was given an inspection tour of the progress at Soccer City, which is undergoing a R1.5bn upgrade. According to a Mail & Guardian Online rpeort, he was welcomed by a group of the 2 500 workers on site, with a rendition of Shosholoza, and said afterwards he was pleased with what he had seen. ’I am today a happy president. I am impressed by the magnitude of the construction. This will be the centre of the World Cup in 2010. It is like a temple where people can meet. It is more than a symbol for South Africa,’ he said.
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Full Mail & Guardian Online report
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| 2010 workers part of history in the making - 16/09/2008 |
During a tour of Greenpoint Stadium in Cape Town, which will host matches during the 2010 FIFA World Cup, a number of workers who were laying cement told visiting FIFA President Sepp Blatter although it was hard work, they were proud to be part of history in the making. ’It really is a beautiful experience knowing that what we are doing here is going to have such a big impact in 2010 and beyond,’ said one worker Phillip Mzizana. Siya Batyi from Gugulethu said it would be great to be remembered as part of the team that constructed the stadium in years to come. Much progress has been made on the building, which is four days ahead of schedule.
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Full BuaNews report
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| R30bn CBD developments for CT - 16/09/2008 |
New developments amounting to about R30bn are planned in the Cape Town central business district in the next three to five years, of which two thirds are private sector investment, said mayor Helen Zille. She said at the opening of the Institute of Municipal Finance Officers’ conference that the Cape metro region as a whole was expected to see 9.5% growth in fixed investment in the medium term. Business Day reports that Zille said public investments included the R2,5bn airport upgrade, R4bn for the 2010 World Cup stadium, the R4.2bn container harbour expansion, R1.3bn for the first phase of the bus rapid transit system, and several billion rand more for road and rail upgrades.
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Full Business Day report
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| Automatic tolling for Gauteng freeways - 14/09/2008 |
Thirty-eight toll gantries are to be installed on Gauteng’s main freeways by 2010. The ambitious project will make it possible to force motorists to foot the multimillion-rand bill for the upgrading and maintenance of the province’s highways so that they can cope with constantly growing traffic volumes. The Sunday Independent reports that the new tolling system is part of the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project drawn up by the South African National Roads Agency Limited in partnership with the Gauteng provincial government and the Tshwane, Johannesburg and Ekurhuleni metros. The roads agency’s communications manager, Wendy Watson said the completion date for the construction of the tolled roads was October 2010, but it was hoped that most of the work would be done before the soccer World Cup.
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Full report in The Sunday Independent
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| Halfway mark for Mbombela - 12/09/08 |
Construction of the Mbombela 2010 Soccer World Cup stadium in Nelspruit has reached the halfway mark. This, despite a series of strike actions in the recent months that have caused contractors to extend their completion deadline by a month from May to June next year. The Mbombela stadium project is among the leading in the country in terms of construction progress. The last of the strikes, two months ago, resulted in over a month of working days being lost. In order to finish the project as scheduled night shifts have been introduced to avoid delays that might be caused by the rainy season. Meanwhile, the Mpumalanga provincial government has unveiled its 2010 one stop facility to ensure the speeding up of delivery on the 24 FIFA guarantees.
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Full SABC report
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| New stadium construction project underway - 11/09/08 |
The construction of a new soccer stadium in Mthatha, which will be a 2010 World Cup legacy project, got under way this week. Built at a cost of R100 million by the Eastern Cape provincial government, the new stadium will be in Zimbane. Premier Mbulelo Sogoni and MEC for sports, arts and recreation Noxolo Abraham-Ntantiso attended the sod-turning ceremony. The new Mthatha Stadium is one of the two new facilities built in the Eastern Cape. The other is the Nelson Mandela Bay Sports Complex.
The Eastern Cape provincial government is also upgrading another venue in East London.
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Full report in The Sowetan
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| New deadline for Gautrain’s phase one - 05/09/2008 |
The Gauteng government will negotiate with the Bombela consortium - responsible for building the Gautrain rapid-rail link - to accelerate completion of the first phase of the project to May 27, 2010, says Gautrain Management Agency CEO, and Gauteng government Gautrain project leader Jack van der Merwe. This means the link between the OR Tambo Airport and the flagship Sandton station will be completed in time for the 2010 World Cup, with the remainder to be wrapped up in 2011. Engineering News reports that Van der Merwe says the Gauteng government has already pledged R150m to the Bombela consortium to accelerate completion of the first phase to June 8, 2010 - which is the day before the 2010 World Cup kicks off. The original deadline for the completion of the first phase of the R25bn Gautrain project was June 27, 2010, which was 45 months after the start of construction on September 28, 2006.
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Full Engineering News report
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| Disabled inconvenienced by airport upgrade - 03/09/2008 |
With major upgrades under way, Cape Town International Airport has been turned into a no-go zone for the disabled. The front sections of both the domestic and international terminals have been turned into a construction site, making it impossible for anyone - except for VIPs, the president, cabinet ministers, the police, airport staff and cab drivers - to gain access to the terminals without walking from the car park 300m away. The Cape Argus reports that Airports Company South Africa spokesperson Deidre Hendricks said while disabled and elderly people had been inconvenienced by the upgrade, the airport had an interim plan in place to assist them. The R1.3bn airport upgrade is set to be completed in time for the 2010 World Cup.
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Full Cape Argus report
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| Contractors appointed for airport upgrade - 03/09/2008 |
Architectural firms Osmond Lange and Ikemeleng Architects will, in a joint venture (JV), lead the 24-month R60m refurbishment project at the Mthatha airport, in the Eastern Cape. The Eastern Cape MEC for Roads and Transport Gloria Barry appointed the JV during a visit to the recently refurbished Bhisho airport, also in the Eastern Cape. Engineering News reports that the Eastern Cape Department of Roads and Transport said that more consultants would be appointed later this week, after a meeting between the Department of Roads and Transport and the Department of Public Works was held. Meanwhile, Barry also announced that the department would, this month, start a process to recruit a further 160 traffic officers by 2009, as the department wanted to deploy 100 of these officers for duty during the 2010 World Cup.
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Full Engineering News report
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| OR Tambo opens R3.2bn terminal – 03/03/2008 |
Airports Company SA (Acsa) is opening the first phase of its R2.3bn central terminal building at OR Tambo International Airport, taking the airport one step closer to a construction-free airport by mid-2010. Business Day reports that all international passengers arriving in Johannesburg will now pass through the sleek, multi-story atrium of the new building — a far cry from the current overcrowded and dark arrivals hall, which will now be closed for renovation. The new public concourse is two and a half times bigger than the airport’s present international arrivals hall. Kesavan Naicker, manager of projects at OR Tambo, said construction at the airport was about 70% complete and there was no doubt that the airport would be ready for the 2010 World Cup.
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Full Business Day report
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| Metal thieves hamper road upgrade – 03/09/2008 |
Contractors upgrading the R-300 from a four- to six-lane dual carriageway spend over R70 000 a week replacing stolen road signs. And contractors say unscrupulous metal thieves from surrounding areas could be the culprits. According to a report on the IoL site, they say gangs of thieves start their stealing spree after workmen leave the site, ripping apart the temporary road signs set up to advise motorists. The stretch of road from Kuils River to Mitchells Plain is undergoing a R700m upgrade, set to be completed in June 2010.
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Full report on the IoL site
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| New MD upbeat about future prospects - 01/08/2008 |
Kurt Schwechheimer is the new man at the helm of Grinaker-LTA Building Cape. This newly appointed divisional managing director is upbeat about the Cape building industry’s prospects for the foreseeable future. Grinaker-LTA Building Cape, which is part of the JSE-listed Aveng Group, recently kicked off a R94m contract to build the Pepper Club residential apartments in Cape Town’s CBD, while in East London, where the division is active in the low-cost housing market, its work on the Reeston housing project is continuing apace. According to a CBN report, Schwechheimer says that, like other industry players, Grinaker-LTA Building Cape is currently contending with challenges such as the volatile fuel and steel markets. The volume of residential work and hotels is expected to start slowing due to the current economic climate and the approach of 2010. Any new hotels that will need to be ready for the World Cup will have to start imminently in order to be completed in time for the start of the competition.
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Full CBN report
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| Airport upgrade plans under way - 29/08/2008 |
Plans to upgrade the Plettenberg Bay airport to accommodate larger planes such as Boeing 737s have taken another step in the right direction. There are also plans under way to upgrade the Oudtshoorn airport. The Bitou municipality has been undertaking a feasibility study on plans to upgrade the Plett airport. The Herald reports that that the Civil Aviation Authority has advised the municipality on a number of changes required and the runway will need to be extended by 200 metres to accommodate larger aircraft. In Oudtshoorn, where a feasibility study is under way, plans are in the pipeline to upgrade the airport to better accommodate 2010 World Cup tourists visiting the area. In the long term, an upgraded airport could be used as a cargo export centre and an alternative venue when weather conditions are unfavourable in George and Port Elizabeth. Municipal project leader Greg Baartman said it could also enable the town to bid to host a 2010 team base camp.
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Full report in The Herald
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| Stadium roof girders arrive in PE - 28/08/2008 |
The first batch of roof girders for the 2010 World Cup stadium in North End, Port Elizabeth, have arrived at the harbour from Kuwait, where they are being manufactured. The Herald reports that the municipality said everything was in order and the 12 girders would be placed immediately. ’We are quite excited about this because it proves that the city is indeed working on schedule and more than able to host the tournament, despite previous reports saying the opposite,’ said municipal spokesman Roland Williams. However, he was not sure about when the next batch would arrive, saying only that the municipality was expecting it in due course.
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Full report in The Herald
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| New development for Pilanesberg - 28/08/2008 |
The booming platinum industry is also giving a much-needed boost to the property sector on the northeastern side of the Pilanesberg, with Amtrad Properties undertaking to develop a R1bn new central business district in the area. Business Day reports that the development, which will take place on the northeastern side of the Pilanesberg National Park close to Bakgatla Camp in North West, will see the establishment of offices, a shopping centre, 170 residential apartments, a soccer stadium and three practice fields, as well as a clinic, private hospital and civic centre. Work on the stadium and practice fields will also begin in the next three weeks because they are to be used in the Confederation Cup and 2010 World Cup.
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Full Business Day report
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| Green Point stadium on track - 27/08/2008 |
Cape Town’s 2010 World Cup stadium is on track for completion in December next year, but the city wants national government to deal with the cost overrun, said mayor Helen Zille. According to a report on the IoL site, she told a council meeting that contractors were currently putting the concrete seating on the last of the three tiers of the stadium, in Green Point. By the end of September the main construction work would be finished and subcontractors would move in to complete the specialised work including the high-tech roof. Apart from infrastructure, the city was also preparing its human resources for the event. Additional law enforcement officers, disaster operations centre and call centre staff would be appointed. Zille said the city did envisage that the stadium would go over its budget, as would all the other 2010 stadia being built in South Africa.
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Full report on the IoL site
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| M&R earnings surge - 27/08/2008 |
Engineering and construction group Murray & Roberts (M&R) reported a 144% increase in its order book to R55bn as at July 1, 2008, which was also a 45% increase on the R38bn order book reported at the half-year ended December 31, last year. Engineering News reports that the group, led by CE Brian Bruce, said that public sector expenditure on infrastructure had emerged strongly throughout the 2008 financial year ended June 30, 2008. M&R said that a full range of programmes was now evident in the power, transportation and water sectors. The level of investment in relation to preparation for the 2010 World Cup had also increased, with additional allocations for the stadium projects having been made.
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Full Engineering News report
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| 2010 projects boosts growth - 26/08/2008 |
Money spent on easing the power crisis, upgrading long-neglected railways and expanding ports saw the total value of new projects announced in the first six months of the year leap to R336bn compared with R194bn for the whole of 2007, a survey showed. This should be enough to help offset slowing consumer demand and prop up growth, according to the Nedbank Capital Expenditure survey. The Daily Dispatch reports that government has proposed massive projects to upgrade infrastructure and to prepare for the 2010 World Cup. ’Infrastructure spend has a direct effect on the economy and increases potential production – that’s why we are very comfortable with GDP (forecast) of 3.7%,’ said Maquarie First South economist Gina Schoeman.
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Full Daily Dispatch report
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| International convention centre for Nelspruit - 24/08/2008 |
A 5000-seater international convention centre is to be built in Nelspruit to coincide with the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The Mpumalanga Economic Growth Agency (MEGA) has acquired land at the Riverside Park and is currently looking for investors for the construction and development of the centre, which will also have a five-star hotel.
Anton Scheepers, head of trade and investment at MEGA said, ’MEGA is acting as a facilitator of the project as part of our mandate to attract new investment into the province. We are still in the process of finding suitable investors to start the project.’
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Full BizCommunity report
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| Harry Gwala construction gets under way - 20/08/2008 |
SAFA Midlands region president Eric Mntshatsha has praised the Umgungundlovu district for making the football governing body one of the main beneficiaries of the new stadium that will be built in Pietermaritzburg. The construction of the new stadium on the site of Harry Gwala stadium will start next month and is expected to be completed in September next year. The Sowetan reports that the municipality is hoping that participating countries will use the new state-of-the-art venue as a training venue for the 2010 World Cup . The capacity of the new stadium will be 20 000, which will also enable home team Maritzburg United to host big matches against the likes of Kaizer Chiefs, Orlando Pirates and Mamelodi Sundowns. Such matches were previously played at Chatsworth in Durban.
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Full report in The Sowetan
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| NUM committed to delivering in 2010 - 19/08/2008 |
National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) members are fully committed to delivering world-class stadiums in South Africa for the 2010 World Cup. That is according to Frans Baleni, the secretary-general of NUM. There have been strikes at various stadiums that will be used for the 2009 Confederations Cup and the 2010 World Cup. The Sowetan reports that Peter Mokaba Sports Centre, Mbombela Stadium, Green Point and Royal Bafokeng are some of the facilities affected by labour strikes in the past four months. ’We are totally committed to the construction and delivery of stadiums that South Africans and Africa will be proud of for the World Cup,’ said Baleni.
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Full report in The Sowetan
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| Gautrain to miss the World Cup? - 19/08/2008 |
The Gauteng government and Bombela will have to renegotiate their contract if the airport link of the R25bn Gautrain project is to be completed in time for the 2010 World Cup. This would further escalate costs, which Parliament’s transport committee chairman, Jeremy Cronin, a critic of the project, estimated in March could rise to R35bn. Business Day reports that as the contract with Bombela stands, the first phase, linking Midrand, Sandton and OR Tambo International, will be completed only by June 27 2010, nearly three weeks after the start of the tournament. Despite assurances from Gauteng Premier Mbhazima Shilowa and Transport Minister Jeff Radebe that the airport link would be completed in time for the World Cup, Bombela has never been contracted to have it finished by then. Gautrain Management Agency CE Jack van der Merwe said a new deal would have to be negotiated. It would require more resources for the project to be completed before the World Cup.
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Full Business Day report
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| Building boom gearing for next upswing - 17/08/2008 |
A multibillion-rand building boom is taking place in South Africa’s major cities, a sizeable portion of which is unrelated to the 2010 World Cup or the Gautrain rapid rail project. According to Business Report, Jacques du Toit, a senior property analyst at Absa, said the planning of big commercial projects had started two or three years ago and to stop these developments now would have huge cost implications. What was also important, Du Toit said, was that property investors and owners were planning and gearing themselves for the next upswing. Du Toit said that after this week’s decision by the Reserve Bank’s monetary policy committee to leave the repo rate unchanged, Absa’s forecast was for interest rates to remain stable.
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Full story in Business Report
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| Airport upgrade well on track - 16/08/2008 |
Airports Company South Africa has spent over R5bn on improving facilities at airports around the country, and remains committed to delivering ’quality aviation infrastructure’ to meet the country’s needs for the 2010 World Cup and beyond. Presenting the company’s financial results in Johannesburg this week, Acsa chairman Franklin Sonn said the company had also started a five-year, R22bn capital expenditure programme to cater for future growth in air travel. SA Info reports that of this amount, he said, about 62% would be spent in the first three years leading up to the World Cup. Also at the presentation was Transport Minister Jeff Radebe, who said the government would work closely with the airports operator. ’We will stay close to Acsa to ensure business sustainability and timely delivery of the critical infrastructure necessary for the biggest marketing opportunity for our country, the 2010 World Cup,’ he said.
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Full SA Info report
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| Construction safety Record celebrated - 15/08/2008 |
Soccer City, the venue for the opening ceremony and the final of the 2010 World Cup, will today celebrate its remarkable safety record. Construction giant Grinaker-LTA host a function for employees to celebrate one million disabling injury free hours on the massive project. Danny Jordaa, CEO of the 2010 Local Organising Committee will personally thank the workers . There are currently over 2 400 employed at the site. The R1.56bn upgrade to the 90 000-seater stadium is expected to be completed ahead of the May 2009 deadline. ’We are very happy with the progress. It’s really exciting to see how fast things are moving. Every time I visit, the progress is visible,’ said Sibongile Mazibuko, the Johannesburg’s executive director for 2010.
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Full report on the Project 2010 site
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| Acsa approves R22bn for upgrades - 15/08/2008 |
The board of the Airports Company South Africa (Acsa) has approved a R22bn capital expansion programme for the airports management parastatal, which will be spent over the next five years. Nearly two-thirds of the money will be spent within the next three years, upgrading major airports and improving facilities at small airports such as Bloemfontein and Upington. According to Business Report, the programme includes R6.8bn in building costs for the new airport at La Mercy, Durban, which will have the capacity to handle 7.5m passengers a year. Acsa has earmarked R5.5bn to be spent this year as it prepares for the traffic demand of the 2010 World Cup.
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Full story in Business Report
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| Polokwane ready to raise the roof - 13/08/2008 |
The construction of the Peter Mokaba Sports Complex in Polokwane for the 2010 World Cup is beginning to take shape and the roof expected to arrive in Limpopo at the end of this month, according to a report in The Sowetan. ’The steel for the roof has already arrived in Johannesburg from Japan where it is being assembled,’ said Ndavhe Ramakuela, the director of the 2010 World Cup for the City of Polokwane. ’The strike did not have a negative effect on our project, but we are delighted that the contractor is coming up with a new programme to fall within the initial completion date of June 2009,’ he added.
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Full report in The Sowetan
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| Conference Centre construction kicks off - 13/08/2008 |
Construction has begun on the Big Hole Conference Centre which will not only create 350 jobs for the residents of Kimberly, but bring more business to the town. BuaNews reports that Northern Cape Premier Dipuo Peters said the centre formed part of the ongoing progress and commitment of the provincial government to improve opportunities in the town. The Joint Initiative of Priority Skills Acquisition has a target to half poverty and reduce unemployment below 15% between now and 2014, through an accelerated initiative with key government stakeholders. With the 2010 World Cup fast approaching, South Africa has opened its doors to international social and economic events, and cities throughout the country have started to exploit this opportunity for the benefit of their communities.
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Full BuaNews report
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