Keetmanshoop — Urban and Rural Development Minister James Sankwasa last week urged //Kharas and Hardap regional stakeholders to speedily deliberate on the establishment and operationalisation of the Southern Regional Electricity Distributor (Sored).
He did so during a stakeholder meeting bringing together stakeholders from the //Kharas and Hardap regions who will be the end users and beneficiaries of the electricity supply project. "This meeting is important because the operationalisation of Sored is not merely an administrative exercise but also forms part of a broader government programme aimed at improving the delivery of essential services to our people and strengthening the institutions responsible for those services," he emphasised. Outlining the objective of the establishment, he said it was to enable local authorities to focus on their core developmental mandate while ensuring that electricity distribution is managed through an institution with the specialised technical, financial and operational capacity required by the sector.
The minister then questioned why a 2002 Cabinet decision calling for the establishment of regional electricity distribution entities had still not been implemented in the two southern regions, while others, such as Nored, Cenored and Erongored, were already functional. "For too long this project was delayed and the time has now come to establish and operationalise the Southern Regional Electricity Distributor as these two regions are behind now for many years," said Sankwasa.
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He then informed the stakeholders present, including regional governors, political councillors and administrative heads of the respective local authorities, that the Regional Electricity Distributor model was conceived to address fragmentation in electricity distribution, strengthen technical and financial capacity, improve efficiency and ultimately ensure better service delivery to communities.
The minister continued: "It was within this context that the Southern Regional Electricity Distributor was registered in 2007, with the intention of consolidating electricity distribution services in the Hardap and //Kharas regions."
He also said that, after many years of development, consultation and institutional preparation, all parties involved had reached a point where they must move decisively towards implementation. "The time has come to turn the vision of Sored into a functioning, accountable and sustainable institution," he added.
He further advised that, as shareholders, local authorities and regional councils must understand that the power distribution entity was not an external organisation coming to take over their responsibilities. "Rather, it is an institution that they have collectively created to strengthen electricity distribution and as such they must therefore move away from thinking only in terms of individual institutional interests," he said.
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In his remarks, //Kharas Regional Governor Dawid Gertze said the delay in getting Sored off the ground was due to a lack of information, understanding and consensus among the relevant stakeholders.
"We must now, more than ever before, come on one page with a better understanding of the benefits of such establishment for the residents of the two regions, therefore voices should speak today during deliberations as one for the people in order to ensure services entitled to will be delivered accordingly," he emphasised.
Also speaking, Hardap Regional Governor Riaan McNab said he was confident that the meeting would signal a common understanding and determination, as business as usual was no longer an option.
"It has now become time we stand together, support each other and act in common interest as two regions for it is only through unity in purpose that we will find lasting solutions for the challenges we are facing," he added.
