The Tswelopele, Dihlabeng, and Mantsopa Local Municipalities shone bright at the Cleanest and Greenest Municipality Awards.
On 19 March, the Free State provincial government hosted the Cleanest and Greenest Municipality Awards at the Bohlokong New Hall in Bethlehem. This initiative was in line with Premier Mxolisi Dukwana’s priority to develop a clean and green Free State.
The municipalities that stood out from the 17 participants were the three aforementioned bodies.
Director-General Kopung Ralikontsane awarded Tswelopele Local Municipality with a cash prize of R3 million for being the cleanest and greenest municipality in the Free State. The first runner-up prize went to the Dihlabeng Local Municipality with a prize of R1,5 million, while the Mantsopa Local Municipality came third and received R1 million.
Makhotso Sotyu, deputy minister for Environment, Forestry and Fisheries, attended the event and informed guests of the department’s efforts in funding expanded public works programmes (EPWPs) across local municipalities.
“The department has, over the years, continued to make a notable contribution in creating employment and skill development opportunities through the implementation of the environment sector employment programmes.”
Dr Tseliso Ntili, provincial head of the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) spoke against pollution while advocating for clean municipalities, emphasising the importance of saving water.
“Each and every drop counts. If we cannot protect our water sources, we will be in trouble,” he says.
The Office of the Premier’s Mzwanele Silwana highlighted that a stringent nomination process had been followed to ensure that awards were bestowed upon the cream of the crop.
According to Silwana, a multidisciplinary team of specialists from the DWS and the Department of Small Business Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs (Destea) moderated the applications and employed various techniques, including score sheets and physical site visits, to ensure that the most deserving municipalities did indeed receive the shine.
