By Arnold Namanja

Blantyre, August 13, Mana: Blantyre City Council (BCC) will soon establish modern amusement parks and recreation centres within the central business district following a successful public private partnership agreement signed between the council and Jura Adventures.

The Public Private Partnership Commission (PPPC) negotiated the K4 billion contract on behalf of BCC to have Jura Adventures develop two existing parks into modern amusement centres at Rangely along the Victoria Avenue and at the Catholic Institute popularly known as CI.

Among other amenities, the parks would have such facilities like restaurants, swimming pool, a music studio and other child friendly attractions in its pursuit to be an entertainment as well as an edutainment centre.

Speaking in an interview with Malawi News Agency (Mana) on the sidelines of the contract agreement ceremony in Blantyre on Monday, PPPC Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Patrick Kabambe said he partnership between BCC and Jura Adventures was a manifestation of the influence of public-private collaboration in driving economic growth.

He emphasized that public-private agreements have the potential to bring huge economic benefits to both parties in the partnership as well as to beneficiary city residents.

He said the commission has the duty to facilitate and negotiate for viable and meaningful partnerships between public-private sector in Malawi to ensure transparency and accountability in public service delivery.

“This partnership is a great milestone for the commission as it would help BCC to develop economically by contributing to infrastructure development of the commercial city of Blantyre.

“When delivered, the parks will not only improve the social profile of the city but also offer international tourism experience to residents and visitors to the city,” the CEO added.    

CEO for BCC, Denis Chinseu said the council was looking forward to realizing urbanization in alignment with the Malawi 2063 Agenda to have modern infrastructure, which corresponds to the agriculture, tourism and mining aspiration strategy.

“The parks will be tailor-made to take on board the expectations and demands of families and children in particular seeking luxury and leisure in a profitable manner. Blantyre is the easiest way to connect to other countries in the region like Mozambique, so we expect a huge traffic of tourists when this is completed.

“The facilities will have the potential to change the mindset of Malawians through its wide range of mental, physical and social activities that will be on offer once completed and open to the public,” Chinseu said.

The BCC chief said the recreation parks would also complement the green and beauty aspiration of the city council.  He said the facilities would also lead to increased revenue generation through user fees and other paying services at the centre. 

He, therefore, disclosed that the procurement process of the contract was very transparent which followed all public procurement and disposal of assets procedures with Jura Adventures, a local company winning the bid.

On his part, Board Chairperson of Jura Adventures, Charles Zimba, the company tasked to do the project, concurred with Chinseu, saying the procurement process of the contract was very transparent and rigorous, disclosing that it dates back to 2013 when initial negotiations were initiated.

Charles Zimba pledged to deliver a good quality facility, which would stand the taste of time; saying: “We will not disappoint; we are very family friendly in our approach to service delivery.”

He said the unit would provide family entertainment and edutainment so that children don’t only play but have some education programmes which would enhance their social skills and develop mentally.    

Zimba added that the facilities would also contribute to the tourism sector in Malawi by attracting local and international tourists, noting that the project would, on one hand, create wealth and jobs in the course of its construction.

The construction of the facilities expected to begin in the next two months will be done in a period of 12 months before being delivered to the client (BCC).