MMSEZ public-participation meeting ends in chaos

Date: 13 May 2021 By: Bernard Chiguvare

Chaos erupted during the third round of the Musina-Makhado Special Economic Zone (MMSEZ) public-participation process held at the Makhado Show Grounds two weeks ago when people started protesting about the languages used and the lack of time interested groups were allowed to give input.

The meeting, held on 29 April, ended prematurely as the people present could not seem to reach an agreement.

The consultants tasked with driving the consultation process, Delta Built Environment Consultants (Delta BEC), had their hands full trying to control the proceedings. Interested and affected parties (I&AP) were allocated 30 minutes to give their inputs and the presentation by Delta BEC was done in three languages - English, Xitsonga and Venda.

Community representatives questioned the state of preparedness of the Venda presenter, as she omitted part of the presentation and took a long time explaining the process. Others insisted that the community representatives present their concerns in African languages, which then had to be translated.

According to Ronaldo Retief from Delta BEC, the purpose of the meeting was to provide I&APs with information regarding the proposed Musina-Makhado SEZ project and give feedback regarding the findings of the final Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) report. I&APs then had an opportunity to seek clarity regarding the findings of the specialist studies and to record any additional comments, issues, and concerns.

The MMSEZ is comprised of two sites; Artonvilla, located in Musina, and the Southern Special Economic Zone, located 50km south of Musina at Bokmakierie. The proposed development stretches over 8 022 hectares of land. In 2017, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) approved the development of the MMSEZ as part of the National Development Plan (NDP).

Following the public-participation meeting held at the Makhado Show Grounds, several of the parties present voiced their concern over the process.

Calvin Leshiba from the National Association of Communal Property Associations said that he was “completely unhappy with Delta BEC’s presentation, as there was no new information”. Leshiba explained that roughly 70 Communal Property Associations exist in Vhembe, but only four were invited for this public participation. “Why be so selective?” he asked. “Scientific reports state that the project is not feasible, since the concerned area has already a challenge of water. The villages that will be affected by MMSEZ go for almost three weeks without water, so where will the project get water from? There are agricultural activities going on in this area and if the project is introduced, farmers in the area will not have a place for these activities. Really, those pushing for the project know very well they are going to benefit.”

Muvuledzi Omega Mudimeli from Mudimeli village, one of the affected villages, believes public participation should be done only in the affected areas or villages. “There is no reason why Delta BEC should go to Pretoria for such participation. Those people are not directly affected. They should come to us who are directly affected,” he said. In his opinion, the public participation should be redone only with the affected parties. Mudemeli represented the Mining Affected Community United Association (MACUA), a union that tries to protect the rights of communities affected by mining development.

SOLVE (Safe our Limpopo Valley), another group opposed to the establishment of MMSEZ, expressed their own disappointment. “We are going to push for another round of public participation, as this one was flawed. The one who did her presentation in Venda skipped some parts of the presentation and only left us with questions. Our affected communities need to know exactly what is going on with this project,” said Phuluso Tshidzumba.

A community member from Musina, Mmanare Semenya, said Musina residents had mixed feelings about the MMSEZ. Some are happy, believing that the MMSEZ could be a job-creation opportunity in their area, while others were worried about the environmental impact the project might have.

According to Deidré Carter, chief executive officer of Agri Limpopo, public participation is about exchanging ideas and finding the best solutions. She said the public was not given enough time, so [the process] must be re-scheduled for the community to voice their concerns and their support.

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Bernard Chiguvare

Bernard Chiguvare is a Zimbabwean-born journalist. He writes mainly for the online publication, Groundup.

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