29 Mar 2017

The newly constructed Diphalane Junction Mall is expected to give Palapye a face lift and attract investors.
The mall, located along Palapye/Francistown road, will cover an area of 20 000 square metres with 47 shops and parking space for 449 vehicles.
The project manager of the P78.5 million mall, which is  still under construction, Mr Anthony Sekgweng told BOPA in an interview that the mall was a property of Benchicks Investments.
Mr Sekgweng said the construction of the project started February 5 last year and was expected to be complete by July 26.
Digital Base is the contractor engaged for the construct of the project, which according to Mr Sekgweng, had created 400 jobs mostly Palapye residents.
The mall, he said was divided into two sections being the active and silent areas.
The silent area is for administration facilities while the active area is for restaurants, super markets and other retail shops, Mr Sekgweng explained.
Shoprite Supermarket and Nandos restaurant will be the mall’s two major tenants with Botswana Building Society expected to occupy a larger space than other proposed banking tenants.
Other tenants, he said included Bahumi and the Bed Shop, restaurants being Maxis, Spur, Capello, a traditional cuisine restaurant and a coffee shop.
As for cellphone dealers, Mr Sekgweng said the mall would house Orange, Samsung, ZTE and Patpal while the rest of the cubicles will be occupied by boutiques and hair salons.
The facilities are designed to be user friendly and accommodating for those travelling on the A1 road bearing in mind that Palapye is a transition point.
Diphalane Mall sits on a prime area, close to the working class, where Botswana Housing Corporation has just built about 300 houses.
The corporation has also proposed construction of 150 flats within the mall’s proximity.
Another positive aspect is the mall’s nearness to the new police station.
Mr Sekgweng said the construction of the mall was progressing well, hence on schedule, but noted that the biggest challenge was the slow response from tenants because the construction had to meet their special requirements.
Other challenges, he said included shortage of water for construction as well as licensing from the South African brands who were holding on their signatures.
Diphalane Junction Mall is expected to create more than 1 000 jobs for Batswana. ENDS