The executive mayor of Vhembe, Cllr Falaza Mdaka, said it was through partnerships and the sharing of experiences, such as the one they had with the Gondal Municipality in India, that municipalities would be able to serve their communities.

Mdaka was welcoming delegates from Gondal Municipality who are visiting the district for a week during a ceremony at the 2Ten Sibasa Hotel on Monday evening..

The delegation’s arrival in Vhembe follows a similar visit by Vhembe officials to Gondal last year, when the two parties pledged to work closely together with the assistance of identified stakeholders.

The group will visit different places and institutions during their stay in the country, such as the University of Venda, Madzivhandila College, Thohoyandou Arts and Culture, Mutale Tourism Centre, Itsani Piggery and Tshakhuma, where they will make assessments, observations and acquire hand information of the area.

Mr Shumani Razwiedani says the visit is part of a twinning programme where municipalities meet in order to share experiences and skills and assist each other in terms of good governance and development. He said other stakeholders, such as the University of Venda and Madzivhandila, were also brought in as partners to unleash the full agricultural potential of the district .He said the municipality, through the Common Wealth Good Practice scheme, applied to be twinned with the Gondal Municipality and their efforts paid off this year when officials from Vhembe visited Gondal in February.

“We as a municipality would like to interact with other growing economies in the world, in terms of how we could sell ourselves to the rest of the world. We are quite confident that with our partnering stakeholders, we will put this municipality on the global map,” he said.

The visit will also consolidate a plan that the expectations and aims of the partnership be realized.

Mdaka said that the time had come now more than ever before for municipalities across the board to learn from each other’s positive intercultural business activities as a way of understanding each other’s traditions, cultures and customs. He said it was the will of God for all to find each other.

Mdaka added that he was excited to be associated with a municipality that had great potential and that they would both benefit mutually from the partnership.

Professor Vhonani Netshandama, who represented the University of Venda, pledged full commitment and said the university would work closely with the other stakeholders. “We commit ourselves to capacity building and training programmes that will see this partnership grow and bear fruits, “she said.

Representing the Indian delegation, Dr Naginbhai Patel said they were very excited about the partnership, which he said would play a very important role in the development of the region and job creation. “India has a lot to give and we know that South Africa will give us something in return,” he said.