18 Feb 2019

Plans to declare  Serowe Sub-district a planning area have been delayed by queries of unaffordability from residents of some villages.

Presenting a report to the Serowe Administration Authority recently, a physical planner with Department of Town and Regional Planning, Ms Patience Chielo, said during the consultation process, they encountered challenges in the surrounding areas while in Serowe the reception was positive. 

Some residents decried the high professional fees such as architectural and the strict building control requirements.

Ms Chielo explained that a planning area required development control and enforcement, issuance of planning permission for all developments as well as confirmation of zoning for licenses and other permits. 

‘’This aspect of service includes granting permission to all types of developments, subdivision of land, consolidation of land, changes of land use, advertisement and hoarding signs,’’ she said.

The planner indicated that through appropriate and enabling urban-development policies, standards and codes, an amenable environment had been created in Serowe.

Chielo said the village had adequate and modern civic and commercial centers; modern functional infrastructure including water, electricity, roads and sewage systems; access to land for virtually all people; adequate housing provided by both the public and private sectors and for the low income bracket, the adoption of a successful programme of squatter upgrading and self-help housing. 

Through careful management and development control practices, the growth of the village had been contained in spite of rapid development, she said.

Ms Chielo said fertile arable land would be considered, adding that it would be easy for the land board to allocate plots.

Serowe Administrative Authority members welcomed the initiative saying vastness of the area  required accurate planning.

They, however, expressed concern that residents might not afford to build to the set standards and requested that the requirements be waived in certain cases.

Planners were concerned about shortage of resources including manpower, funds and transport.

Earlier, attendants were informed that Serowe Administrative Authority formed part of the Central District and was established following the division of Serowe/Palapye Sub-district because of its unmanageable size that rendered planning ineffective. 

Apart from Serowe itself, the authority also services Mabeleapodi, Tshimoyapula, Dimajwe and Majwanadipitse villages. Ends