Permanent delegates to the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) have raised serious concerns about delays, poor planning and deteriorating infrastructure at Harmony Gold’s small, medium and macro enterprises (SMMEs) Integration Hub in Khuma Township, Stilfontein. The hub was built in 2022 and is still unoccupied.
Delegates conducted a site visit at the hub on Wednesday as part of the NCOP’s Taking Parliament to the People (TPTTP) programme in Dr Kenneth Kaunda District, North West. The hub was developed using customised shipping containers and is intended to empower local entrepreneurs through small business opportunities. It was built as part of Harmony Gold’s Social Labour Plan.
The project is supposed to accommodate 10 beneficiaries operating businesses ranging from a bakery, salon and butchery to cellphone repairs, laundry services and a restaurant.
Briefing delegates, Harmony Gold Regional Manager for Socio-Economic Development, Mr George Masha, said the project was initially budgeted at R5 million but costs have escalated to approximately R7 million, partly due to prolonged security expenses aimed at protecting the facility from vandalism and theft.
Mr Masha explained that the project experienced major delays linked to basic service connections. Harmony Gold reportedly waited 18 months for water to be connected by the municipality, while the delivery of a transformer purchased through Eskom delayed electricity connections by a further eight months.
Although electricity and water are now connected to all containers, beneficiaries have yet to occupy the facility. Mr Masha indicated that beneficiaries are expected to move into the hub next month, while the official handover to the municipality will take place at a later stage after inspection by the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources, which monitors mining companies’ social and labour plans.
Delegates welcomed efforts to safeguard the site through security personnel but expressed dissatisfaction with several aspects of the project. Group leader Mr Dennis Ryder said the condition and progress of the facility were deeply concerning. “What the delegation is seeing at this facility is disappointing,” he said, adding that there are serious questions to answer about planning, implementation and accountability.
Delegates questioned why a proper business feasibility study had not been conducted before implementation, warning that some of the planned enterprises may struggle to survive due to poor market analysis and the location of the hub.
Mr Ryder further called on Harmony Gold to provide NCOP with a detailed report outlining the project scope and expenditure.
The oversight visits also exposed growing frustration among intended beneficiaries, some of whom attended the visit independently after learning that NCOP delegates were in the area. They complained that their concerns about the location of the facility were ignored, arguing that the hub was built outside the township instead of within the community where economic activity is concentrated. “We identified land in the heart of the township, but our input was not considered,” one beneficiary told delegates.
Others reported that some equipment remained boxed and damaged, some container structures were leaking, and theft of equipment had already occurred, despite security measures being in place. Other beneficiaries said the prolonged delays had deepened their financial hardships rather than improved their economic prospects.
Delegates indicated that the issues raised during the visit would form part of NCOP’s ongoing oversight and accountability processes as the House continues its TPTTP programme in the district.
Justice Molafo
13 May 2026
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