19 February 2009

By Sipho None

PREPARATIONS for the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ are moving at the speed of lightning, and this became evident when Mogale City joined the SABC in its Greening the Nation project.

The national broadcaster has embarked on the project in its countdown to the World Cup and has partnered with municipalities across the country in a bid to beautify South Africa for the football spectacular.

This initiative will see two plaques and two indigenous trees planted in all the participating municipalities. In Mogale City, the trees were planted at the Civic Centre gardens, opposite the Ackermans retail store. The planting was followed by the celebratory popping of corks.

The trees, a Pococarpus falcatus and an Olea woodiana, were planted adjacent to the two plaques, which bear the municipality’s name. The Speaker of council, Noluthando Mangole, and councillors, City officials, and the 2010 World Cup manager all braved the cool weather for the occasion.

Mangole said beautifying the city was part of the key strategies towards 2010 and of the day-to-day running of the city.

“As a municipality we are excited about this initiative and we welcome the planting of the trees and the unveiling of the plaques with both hands. However, we want to indicate that beautifying the city is the daily routine programme of the municipality.

“Greening of the city is one of our top priorities and we are not doing this because the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ is coming to South Africa. This is one of our key strategies towards 2010 and beyond. We will continue to green and beautify our city and we hope that our communities will also adopt the idea,” she said.

Mncedi Dludlu, the project co-ordinator of Bakay Sport Management, the company commissioned by the SABC to spearhead the project, said the planting of indigenous trees was geared towards educating communities about global warming.

“This project is set to address issues of global warming and the only way to educate our communities about these issues is to engage municipalities and plant indigenous trees throughout the country.”

The plantings will be broadcast on television on Countdown 2010, an SABC programme.