The community of Witsand, in Atlantis, in the Western Cape, and informal settlements infrastructure nonprofit People's Environmental Planning (PEP) have installed 300 solar-powered lights to improve safety in the community after dark.
The wall-mounted solar lights are operational and this first phase placed lighting along critical travel routes, crime hotspots and pathways identified through a collaborative mapping and planning process with the community.
The Witsand community first approached PEP in August 2024 after identifying lighting as the area's most urgent development priority.
Over the following two years, community leaders and representatives worked with PEP and informal settlements lighting nongovernmental organisation LightUp to map priority areas, identify suitable households for wall-mounted lights and secure household consent.
A team from the community was trained and participated in the installation, which helped to build local skills and ownership alongside the physical infrastructure.
