It was very exciting to visit the Georgetown Library last Friday for the official opening of the Computer Centre which has been established. This will provide old and young the opportunity of learning computer skills to better equip them for the world of work. Little is done in business these days that does not require computer literacy.

It was also an occasion to reflect on the scenic beauty of Edendale. But for the laws and policies of apartheid, this area surrounded by hills might have developed as a fancied suburb where the views and surroundings are tranquil and attractive to residents. Instead, and despite its rich cultural history, Edendale continues to labour under its ‘township’ character. Many solo efforts, political commitments and the resources of the Greater Edendale Development Initiative (GEDI) have all failed to find the way by which Edendale may advance and its people become economically liberated.

Perhaps for too long, there has been reliance on some kind of evolutionary process in the hope that this will bring the much-needed spurt. Unfortunately, however, it has had the opposite effect inasmuch as those families that have gained prosperity from the democratic freedom and moved into the so-called middle class have tended to leave the area for suburbs closer to the centre of town This migration has deprived Edendale of some of its leaders and, indeed, those who might have constituted the nucleus of housing developments which are part and parcel of modern middle-class society as one finds in many other Maritzburg suburbs.

I wonder what the other factors are that have stood in the way of development here. We know that the ownership of land has been fraught with difficulty and that the transfer of administrative power from the province to the city was not without serious repercussions. We know, too, that private land-owners would like to engage in development, but often lack the financial means to do so. They may recognise the potential value of their asset, but cannot realise it themselves. They are often under some pressure to dispose of the land to another developer, but are reluctant to give up the chance of profiting themselves from their land which might have been in their hands for years. We know that there is wetland area in a part which, considering its locality, appears to be well-suited for development. How encouraging it was to read recently of a consortium of property-owners who have come together and planned a major development. One hopes that this will be achieved and, in the nature of development, act as a catalyst for other development projects.

Edendale should have a shopping centre and a major supermarket, an array of banking facilities, active sports clubs so that youthful talent may be developed, acceptable domestic services, affordable transport into town and a record of community advancement. It should be accessible and attractive, even to those who do not live there.

Several years ago, there started an initiative to establish an ICT hub in Edendale. At first the PCB was sceptical, but then realised that this was exactly the kind of development that might trigger off the area’s revival. Like many others, this project appears to have been parked somewhere, waiting for goodness knows what to happen before it can be resumed. Perhaps it was waiting for Telkom to approve ADSL facilities into Edendale which, to my knowledge, are not available yet. With the best will in the world, the additional prosperity supposedly brought to the city by the development of the Liberty Midlands Mall and others, will not automatically find its way across town into the Edendale Valley. Economic development across all our communities cannot be accomplished by reliance on the ‘trickle down’ process. The matter is altogether too urgent.

Zinhle Sokhela - PCB President

This article appeared in the Edendale Eyethu on the 3 July 2008