…as over 700 families have benefited so far
Twenty-eight families have today been ushered into their brand-new homes built under the Informal Settlement Upgrading Pilot Project (ISUPP) in Goreangab Extension Four.
These houses are part of the 113 housing units that the project launched four months ago, on March 25, 2024.
Speaking at the handover event, National Housing Enterprise (NHE) Board Member Socrates Dias said that construction of the remaining 85 units is progressing well and the project is on schedule in line with the project execution plan.
“This handover today signifies an unparallel magnitude of commitment from all stakeholders who are part of this project, which has garnered so much success since its inception approximately four years ago.
“The NHE is grateful, Honourable Minister, for this noble initiative, which was coined under your exemplary leadership and guidance, as it has delivered tangible results in record time and helped the NHE and our partners make significant strides towards the attainment of our respective mandates,” he said.
To date, over 700 families who previously resided in informal structures have benefited from the ISUP.
“This level of success has ignited our collective belief that this concept can be rolled out to other parts of the country. This undertaking is in line with our national mandate, and one of NHE’s priority areas is to strike a huge dent in the existing national housing backlog.
“To this end, Honourable Minister, I am delighted to inform you that we have engaged several local authorities on the possibility of implementing the ISUP in their towns. We have ongoing engagements with the Swakopmund Municipality, Gobabis Town Council, and Otjiwarongo Municipality, and yesterday we were in Usakos, where, together with the Council, we had fruitful deliberations with the community there. It is encouraging that such efforts have been met with a high level of appreciation and anticipation among residents, which reflects the growing demand for housing in our country,” he said.
The Informal Settlement Upgrading Pilot Project (ISUPP) is a partnership between the Ministry of Urban and Rural Development (MURD), the Khomas Regional Council (KRC), the National Housing Enterprise (NHE), and the City of Windhoek (COW).
Also speaking at the event, Urban and Rural Development Minister Erastus Uutoni said that houses and housing units built under this project have become very popular and the demand has skyrocketed, which prompted them to look at priority areas and devise measures to increase the housing stock under this project.
“To this end, we continue to endeavour to provide adequate numbers of serviced plots under the Mass Urban Land Servicing Project. Through the ISUPP, the government intends to eliminate shacks in our informal settlements by upgrading serviced plots with a formal structure. Once the pilot project is completed, plans are at an advanced stage to approach other local authorities in the country to implement the same project in their localities,” he said.
The 28 houses handed over are a combination of 2-bedroom free-standing and 1-and-2-bedroom flats that would cater for various income levels of beneficiaries.
“We have entrusted the construction part to the City of Windhoek and the National Housing Enterprise to continue the excellent work they have been doing for the past three years. These houses are constructed in three phases over a period of 12 months, with the final stock expected to be delivered in April 2025, and beneficiaries will be identified in line with the criteria of the Informal Settlement Upgrading Pilot Programme. So far, we have received hundreds of applications from individuals who want to benefit from the project, and this was done transparently via an advertisement that was placed in printed media platforms,” Uutoni said, adding, “I am reliably informed that the remaining 224 erven in Goreangab Extension 4 is still being finalised in terms of the installation of required services. These plots are expected to be ready in 2025 and will result in the construction of at least 400 housing units. I am optimistic that our efforts will yield positive results and that the reduction of shacks in our informal settlements will be evident for all to see.”