Zikalala to engage with forest village communities in George

Minister Zikalala, together with officials from different government departments and entities, will hold discussions with the communities in a bid to find a permanent solution to the plight of these communities.

Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Sihle Zikalala will on Saturday engage with forest village communities in George in the Western Cape.

These communities occupy remote government land under the custodianship of the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI) and have limited basic services such as water, road infrastructure, economic activities and aging and unmaintained infrastructure.

Forest villages are compact settlements that were established around forest plantations, when the land was allocated to the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) for plantation purposes, to allow plantation workers to be closer to the working sites.

The villages were informally established and mostly situated in remote areas, far away from the urban edge. Some of the challenges faced by the communities is that there is no formal township established and properties could not be transferred to occupants.

Minister Zikalala, together with officials from different government departments and entities, will hold discussions with the communities in a bid to find a permanent solution to the plight of these communities. 

(With Inputs from South African Government Press Release)