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Residents
to prepare for tourist influx
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Cato Manor community leaders attend a workshop to introduce
the craft and merchandising project.
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Approximately
80 Cato Manor residents are in line to receive training in
craft production and merchandising. The training will prepare
the residents to face the growing international demand for
local crafts.
The aim of the project is to make 70% of crafts produced locally
available to the huge international market, with the balance
to be sold in regional markets.
Sizimisele Development Trust (SDT) has been appointed to assist
the residents with the necessary technical skills. SDT is
already involved in similar projects elsewhere in KwaZulu-Natal.
The project is regarded as a pilot project with a two-year
life span. It is believed that at the end of the two year
period residents, especially women and the youth, will have
been empowered sufficiently to manage the project on their
own.
The European Union has made R400 000 available for this project
and has invited various stakeholders, such as the Metro Economic
Development, Durban Africa and KZN Tourism, to make an input
so that the project can be successful.
The project is scheduled to kick off in May, but before training
begins, there will be a needs assessment study to determine
what training is appropriate.
Contact details:
Interested crafters should contact Maggie Dladla at SDT on
519 1716 or Sthembile Cele at CMDA on 261 6640.
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Fund
named after struggle stalwart
 Members
of the community gathered at the Chesterville community
hall recently to honour the late Mary Thipe, by naming
an education fund in her name. Mary Thipe was born
in a village called Ramhlakoane in the Matatiele district
in 1917. She later moved to Umkhumbane and joined
the liberation struggle in 1952. For her efforts she
was detained, arrested and banned for five years.
It was a difficult life for a woman with five daughters
and one son to fend for. The education fund was launched
to help support poor children who wish to further
their studies, but don’t have the money to do so.
“It is important to have a fund that will assist needy
people who desire to further their studies. It is
a contribution to the struggle to liberate mankind
from the shackles of poverty,” said Maggie Thipe,
grand daughter of Mary.
The late Mary Thipe receiving an award from the Indian
High Commission for her part in the struggle for liberation.
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Safety
program on track
The
partnership between the City of Durban and its twin sister,
the City of Leeds in the United Kingdom is still very much
on track. A delegation from Leeds visited Cato Manor recently
to assess the preparations that have been made with regards
to the Cato Manor Community Safety projects.
Cato Manor was chosen to pilot a community safety project
by the Durban Metro Executive Committee, which is working
with its counterparts in Leeds on the project.
To kickstart the project a team of researchers was tasked
to conduct a crime audit in the area. Among other things the
audit aims to determine the social and physical characteristics
of the area, what crime prevention activities are in place,
and to prioritise specific problem areas.
It is hoped that this survey will make it possible to identify
interventions that are necessary and to resolve conflicts
between different stakeholders who have an interest in safety
and security.
“The beauty of the process is that it involves the very people
who are affected by crime on a day to day basis i.e the community,”
said Sbu Xulu, the project manager of the Cato Manor Safety
Project.
“Consulting and engaging the community in the planning process
will help establish community concerns. We will also be able
to identify grey areas in terms of reported and unreported
crimes, and match this information against police data. There
is a moratorium on the release of crime statistics by the
police, which creates difficulties in terms of painting a
picture of the crime situation in the area.”
According to Sbu, the next phase of this programme will be
to engage the community and service providers in focus group
discussions. These will provide a platform for feedback, and
will empower communities to actively participate in the crime
prevention programmes.
Running parallel to the focus groups will be a process of
collating crime statistics from local police stations.
If all goes well in terms of planning and the sourcing of
funds, the project will be ready for implementation in July
this year.
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Get
a super shine for your car
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TOURISM
PROJECT
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 Self-employment
is still the best way of beating poverty. These sentiments
were expressed by four young men from Cato Crest who have
opened up their own small car wash business – the first
of its kind in Cato Manor.
Super Shine Car Wash has now been open for a month and is
already showing signs of becoming a force to be reckoned
with in the car wash industry.
Most Cato Manor-based car owners patronise car washing services
in either Sydenham or Overport. This is an inconvenience
to most people as it means more mileage and more fuel spent.
Super Shine Car Wash is the brain child of Thembinkosi Shanganse
and Nkosingiphile Nkosi. Both have cars and both live in
Cato Crest, where most roads are untarred and become very
muddy when it rains. “We used to go to Sydenham to have
our cars cleaned before we went to town. In Sydenham we
saw many people from Cato Manor who came to wash their cars
so we decided to open our business near the creche in Molver
Road. But the location did not make us popular with the
nearby community so we decided to move to the corner of
Molver and Cato Manor Roads. At first it was not easy as
it is council land that is earmarked for development. But
after a few eviction notices and meetings, we were able
to come to an agreement that allows us to operate on a temporary
basis,” said Thembinkosi.
For just R10 Super Shine can give your car a thorough clean
and vacuum – so how about supporting a local business.
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 Trainee
Tour Guides wanted
The CMDA
is facilitating the development of tourism products in Cato
Manor and would like to interview residents from Cato Manor
who are interested in training as tour guides. We are looking
for dedicated people with a passion for their community and
commitment to promoting Cato Manor as an interesting tourist
destination. Some knowledge of the history of Cato Manor during
the 1940’s and 1950’s and knowledge of the new developments
would be an advantage. Requirements
- 1.
Have an excellent command of the English language. An additional
language such as German, French or Spanish would be an advantage.
- 2.
Have a minimum educational standard of Matric.
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Be computer literate.
- 4.
Apply in writing providing references from community leaders,
employers and proof of qualifications.
- 5.
Show evidence of community involvement, service and understanding
of social issues.
- 6.
Provide a telephone number where you can be contacted for
an interview.
- 7.
Be a full time resident of Cato Manor.
Apply
in writing to: Tour Guide Training Project, Communications
Manager CMDA: P O Box 30230, MAYVILLE 4058 Closing date for
applications: 18th May 2001.
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