MEC visits Hornlee Clinic

Update

KNYSNA NEWS - Western Cape Health and Wellness MEC Dr Nomafrench Mbombo visited Hornlee Clinic on Monday 15 May to give an update on its development.

Recently, the Department of Health and Wellness has taken over as the lead implementer from Public Works - a decision that will speed up the progress in building a replacement clinic for Hornlee.

"Going forward, we will ensure that all stakeholders are kept abreast with the latest developments so that we can strengthen our whole-of-society approaches," said Mbombo.

"The Hornlee Clinic has been a continuous development in the department and is something we take seriously."

The department has taken over the project from the Department of Infra-structure (formerly the Department of Public Works). In all governments, the department of public works is usually the implementing agents of infrastructure.

The process under the Department of Public Works usually takes seven years (five years allocated to negotiations, designing and planning) and then another two years spent in the building phase.

Seeing that there is an urgent need to improve upon the Hornlee Clinic, the Department of Health and Wellness has stepped in.

They finalised a management contract in October of last year and the Department of Health and Wellness will be managing the construction and implementation of the entire project.

The current timeline of the clinic's development is a year: due to planning, negotiations and approvals that need to be overseen in accordance with the relevant councils and committees before building can take place.

The development of the clinic is projected to start in December 2024 and it is expected to be constructed by 2025. To expedite the development, the department is engaging with the council, the various committees, the community and all the relevant stakeholders.

Councillor Jason White with MEC Dr Nomafrench Mbombo