Hibberdene Harbour & Waterfront Project

Overview

BACKGROUND

Hibberdene is a coastal town located within the Ugu Region (DC21). It falls within the coastal corridor of the Emzumbe-Turton sub-region, encompassing the Thulini Traditional Authority. In keeping with the Integrated Development Plan and the Integrated Coastal Management plan for the Ugu region, the Emzumbe-Turton sub-regional plan stresses the importance of tourism as a lead sector. The regional Ugu and local Hibiscus councils support the development of a small craft yacht basin / ski-boat base within the region, and this has been registered in the IDP Plan for the area.

THE MARINA / YACHT BASIN

The plan is to build two breakwaters or piers into the sea and excavate the adjacent deproclaimed and disused air field. This will be lined with gabion terraces and will provide moorings for 200 big yachts and for 300 smaller craft. The land within the immediate vicinity of the water will form a complete marina-type development within the safety of the shoreline. Minimal invasions will take place into the beach or dune areas. Various surrounding landowners have become involved and there are prime sites in the immediate vicinity for hotels, housing in prime beachfront locations, a 600Ha game estate and other housing and tourism related developments.

SOCIAL SECURITY

Within this total Ugu region are some 680,000 persons with an unemployment level of 58%. There have been very few developments, which have made any real difference to their lives; RDP funds have been returned unspent, and there is an extreme lack of meaningful training for jobs or work creation. We wish to address this with the growth of this harbour project and the commitment of the investors to invest in the area.

There are four major initial projects:

1. SANTA TB HOSPITAL ~ This has a ward with 200 beds which remains closed because of lack of funds.

2. CULTURAL VILLAGE ~ There is a demand for the development of real indigenous culture which offers hospitality for tourists and a place for this has been identified and it will be constructed with the aid of the community.

3. LOCAL SHOOLS ~ All of these have numerous basic needs waiting to be fulfilled.

4. NYANGWINI AGRICULTURAL COLLEGE ~ The facility is here but it needs funds to be able to extend their training facilities to train artisans needed to work on the different building projects. The commitment will always be to employ local labour first, but they need to have their skills upgraded.

OWNERSHIP

At present the land is owned by the Department of Public Works and we have a letter from the Department of Public Works stating they will transfer the land on completion of the EIA (Environmental Impact Assessment), to a company to be formed, which will be responsible for the development of the harbour and the control of the environs and concomitant infrastructure. This application has been made and a suitably qualified company appointed to complete the EIA.

The benefits brought by the project to the South Coast of KwaZulu-Natal will be enormous. At this stage the area is missing all the development schemes running in Central and Northern Natal. North of Durban millions of Rands have been spent on the area because of the involvement of Anglo-American, Old Mutual and Tongaat Huletts. The largest company in the middle South Coast is Illovo Sugar, and they are spending all their capital North of South Africa. We cannot emphasise enough that the South Coast will sink into a mire of poverty if there is not a major project of this nature undertaken very soon in the area. We have many unemployed, helpless people needing a boost to be able to improve their own lives. The schools are still underfunded in the area, and, clinics have been built in the district, but remain closed due to lack of staff or lack of medicines - people therefore still have to get to Port Shepstone Hospital for medical care. There is a pressing need for training for the unemployed adults and we wish to address this area within the project.

CATALYST

The community is depending on someone to be the catalyst in their lives to open up their future. The Hibberdene Harbour & Waterfront Project will do exactly that. There are no other schemes in the area; the farms are the major employers and they are not increasing their employment levels. As businessmen and landowners, we are happy with the Government's vision and control of the economy as it is at present, but feel that the South Coast needs special intervention to provide this boost.

This project will be sustainable and over a period of 5 years will involve the spending of 1.3 to 1.7 Billion Rand. There is no other project that will be able to do the same for this district. From there, the spin-offs in Tourism and increase to the rates base of the region cannot be over-emphasised.