15 Nov 2020

Jwaneng Town Council has taken a decision to take advantage of its location along the Trans-Kalahari Highway and establish a truck inn and associated facilities to cash in on haulage truckers that ply the road on a daily basis.

The town council has availed a piece of land and entered into partnership with a private property developer, Excavator Hire Botswana, to establish among others a 40-roomed lodge, camp site, filling station, tyre service workshop and truck bays.

The agreement is that the developer will construct the project at their own cost and operate it on a 30-year lease while paying the council monthly rentals.

Speaking at the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) recently, Jwaneng Township mayor, Ms Olga Ditsie said  they were happy that the agreement, whose negotiations started in 2016, was finally arrived at after some delays.

“Our patience has finally paid off and it tells a story of determination by both parties. We have been eagerly waiting for this moment and we are happy that we will soon be undertaking the ground breaking for this project. This project will also help assist President Dr Mokgweetsi Masisi’s initiative of jobs creation for Batswana, and this project will surely create jobs right from the construction stage,” she said.

Ms Ditsie also said that upon completion, the project would help the township reduce its over-reliance on the Debswana Jwaneng mine as the main source of employment in town.

She therefore urged the developer to empower locals in the project as a way of assisting government in jobs creation, and that jobs creation should not be narrowed on just the project itself, but other perks that would be associated with its operation.

For his part the Director of Excavator Hire Botswana, Mr Markos Markides said that the event marked a great occasion for them as a company. He cautioned that the implementation of the project would not be without challenges, especially as it was the first time that his company engaged in such.

He also appreciated Jwaneng Town Council for selecting his company among the many that showed interest. Mr Markides made an assurance that they would engage many locals in all the stages. “Our company has been doing well in employing the locals, and we are renowned as an equal opportunity employer. This is a big project that we hope will not be difficult to find investors for,” he said. The construction of the project is expected to start early next year. Ends