The Human Development Agency is expected to build about 500 000 houses in the next five years as a way of responding to the country’s human settlement issue.
Government is stepping up efforts to ensure that it provides housing to people in well-located areas, where they have access to both economic opportunities and the services they need.
Delivering the 2019 State of the Nation Address in Parliament, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced the establishment of the Human Settlements Development Bank as the country seeks to accelerate the delivery of housing.
He noted that if the South African government is to effectively address the substantial housing backlog, models of financing human settlements needed to be developed.
The President explained that the Human Settlements Development Bank will leverage both public and private sector financing to aid in housing delivery.
“We will also be expanding the People’s Housing Programme, where households are allocated serviced stands to build their own houses, either individually or through community-led housing cooperatives,” he said.
President Ramaphosa said the Human Development Agency would, in the next five years, construct an additional 500 000 housing units.
“A further R30 billion will be provided to municipalities and provinces to enable them to fulfil their respective mandates,” he said.
President Ramaphosa added that government’s policy and legislative interventions will ensure that more land is made available for agriculture, industrial development and human settlements.
“Strategically located land will be released to address human settlements need in urban and peri-urban areas,” he said.
During the 2017/18 financial year, the Housing Development Agency delivered 2 358 housing units in the Johannesburg, Tshwane and Ekurhuleni metros. About 3 440 sites and services completed from the projects funded by the Urban Settlement Development Grant and 1 637 beneficiaries were approved.
In addition, 6 907 172 hectares of land has been acquired for the Gauteng Department of Human Settlements in the City of Ekurhuleni.
- SAnews.gov.za
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