- Overview
Social infrastructures are foundational services and structures that support the quality of life of people living within the municipality and beyond.
They refer to the facilities and mechanisms that ensure education, health care, community development, income distribution, employment, and social welfare.
The economy cannot be looked at in isolation without considering the basic needs of the people, and a significant level of investment is needed in this sector.
It, therefore, include infrastructure that goes beyond basic economic functions to make a community an appealing place to live with such social facilities as schools, hospitals, prisons, and industrial capacity of the municipality such as power, water supply, sewerage, communication, roads and bridges, ports airports, railways, housing, urban services, etc.
Social infrastructure within the Tiko Municipality plays an important role in both the economic development of the city and the development of the quality of life of the people and communities much in line with its adopted core values of Our People - Our Community - Our Service.
The current leadership and management uses social infrastructure to enhance social wellbeing and further economic growth by providing basic services and facilities which can allow businesses to develop and flourish.
Examples include the rapid reconstruction of the Tiko main market consumed by fire disaster, the construction of market stalls around the Tiko and the Mutengene motor park as well as the systematic transformation of streets with roadblocks to ease movements.
These data are currently being collected and analyzed in urban and village studies. The current data from the last CDP cannot be considered as current. A detail presentation shall be made at the end of the study.
The Social Infrastructure of the Tiko Council typically includes assets and facilities that accommodate social services. As said in the table below, these Infrastructures within the Municipality are set up and/or owned by the council and other stakeholders. They include amongst other schools, universities, hospitals, road infrastructure, playgrounds, Bus stations, Public toilets, prisons, and community housing, etc.
Social Infrastructure of the Municipality could also be extended to the provision of staff, social services or facilities such as the provision of teachers at a school, scholarships to students and pupils or support services at the central prison and burial of abandoned corpses The council has articulated some of its actions in this second area.
It is important to note that, Social infrastructure here refers to the facilities and mechanisms that ensure education, health care & Hygiene, community development, income distribution, employment and social welfare.
And that, though Infrastructure is generally conceived as 'hard' such as primary roads and water treatment plants, etc., more recently 'soft' infrastructure like hospitals, community and recreational facilities, public spaces, social housing, volunteer networks, and community-based agencies are gaining attention.
The term "infrastructure" is therefore increasingly coming to include this "soft" or "social" infrastructure. This is because such infrastructure increases social cohesion in urban cores, resulting in stronger municipal economies.
Table 13: Social infrastructure general classification |
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# |
Social Infrastructures |
Existence and Ownership |
Remarks |
1 |
Market facilities, stalls, public spaces |
Several owned by Council hired by private entrepreneurs |
Council to envisage more investment in the sector. TC should equally get into facilitation businesses |
2 |
Health Facilities |
Council own & run none Government Hospitals with Mayor as chair of BOD. Several Church owned hospitals. Pro Pharmacy(GoC & GIZ) Private Hospitals & clinics |
TC to facilitate insurance scheme. TC to enforce M & E, Quality assurance for Private Centres. Regulate & facilitate to ensure equal opportunities or special status for persons with special needs, less privileged, vulnerable, elderly, orphans and IDPs. |
3 |
Schools: Primary, Secondary, Post-Secondary & professional Centres |
None owned & run by Tiko Council. GoC schools with PTA management support. Faith based Institutions Private schools: owned & run by individuals |
Regulate & facilitate to ensure equal opportunities for persons with special needs, less privileged, vulnerable, orphans, IDPs |
4 |
Housing: Staff quarters. Urban Low cost housing. |
Few owned by Council State housing: Police, military barracks, Gendarme quarters CDC staff quarters School dormitories owned by faith Institutions. |
Increase investments to ease need, cost & more low cost housing. CDC Plantation quarters and social facilities need serious improvement. Homes for elderly and mentally challenged with special health services Need to improve general quality and quantity. |
5 |
Play grounds & social resorts |
Municipal stadium School fields (GoC & Churches Private company clubs Friendship and cultural clubs |
Serious need to help children and youths find alternative to addiction to drugs, money and video games, TV and social media malaise. |
6 |
Public Taps & Toilets |
Few toilets & taps (TC) Camwater & CDC water treatment & distribution. Community water management schemes (VDC Mutengene). |
Volume of water Serious Need of taps at public places and pipeline expansion. Council to institute parallel Quality control. |
7 |
Garbage cans & waste disposal |
Joint partnership: GoC, Council & HYSACAM Agency |
Needs expansion of services Strengthen TC original garbage services. Needs for a complete sewage treatment and management plan. |
8 |
Town Halls, show rooms, social centres |
TC and few inadequate private halls for celebrations. |
Need modernization & more capacity Need children special Play ground |
9 |
Corrections & Justice Centre |
Courts, (GoC) Traditional courts Police and gendarme detention centres |
Insufficient, inadequate & serious need. Need special centres to rehabilitate minors Improve expediency |
10 |
Road & Transport Facilities |
Insufficient roads (GoC) No walkway, signs, zebra crossing, traffic lights for pedestrians, bikes & cars even on the national highway that cuts across the municipality. No subsidized transportation |
Require planning, identification New network required |
11 |
Slaughter house |
Two (2) Owned by council |
Needs valorisation |
12 |
Power & Energy infrastructure |
ENEO/GoC, Private Generators, Private Gas distributors |
Shortage upgrade of power supply urgent Urgent need to invest in alternative and renewable sources requires. |
Tiko is growing faster than its investment in Social Infrastructure. There is an urgent need for both “hard” and “soft” Infrastructure to cater to the growing number of inhabitants, the physically challenged, the less privileged, maladjusted, social cases, elderly, mental patients, IDPs, and Orphans.
However, long distances, lack of adequate infrastructure and transport network, remote villages, absence of proper planning, insufficient needs have been deterrents to efforts in delivering social Infrastructural services to the people.
The current health infrastructure in the municipality is inadequate to cater to the needs of the growing population, especially in rural areas, islands, and creeks. The later seems allowed to fend for themselves.