BULAWAYO mayor David Coltart says council will render its full support to raise the standards of living at Entembeni Old People’s Home.
He made the remarks during his visit at the institution saying it would be a total failure for the whole council to fail to take care of its vulnerable groups.
He praised the staff at the home saying: “You are heroes in our city. You work hard every day without the praise that comes here, but this is critical work because if we do not look after the most vulnerable in our society, then we have failed.
“The staff members know that it is difficult to work with old people, difficult to work with people with dementia. I deeply appreciate your diligence and companion that you are showing.”
He said the old people are residents that have worked hard in their twilights.
“The challenge as a city is how practically we can help,” Coltart said.
“As a city, we do not have a huge budget, but I am convinced that if a city does not help institutions like this, we would have failed.”
Entembeni Old People’s Home board chair Newman Sibanda said the institution has a capacity of 75 beds housing 52 inmates with a ratio of 41 men and 11 women.
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He said challenges affecting the institution are replacement of worn out beds, security wall, renovation of the kitchen and cold room construction.
“We aim to increase our capacity of 52 to 100 inmates,” Sibanda said.
“We look forward to the construction of a fowl run that can hold up to 10 000 chickens.”
