It is imperative that every income category is provided with housing products that correspond with their financial position to ensure that every Namibian gets decent housing.
These were the sentiments of Urban and Rural Development Minister Erastus Uutoni during the handover of 102 plots for low-cost housing to residents of Henties Bay on Monday.
According to Uutoni, Government recognises everyone’s right to an adequate standard of living, including adequate housing, and the provision of basic infrastructure and services remains one of the top priorities at all levels of Government including Central, Regional and Local levels.
“Over the last two decades, housing in Namibia has remained a very complex and combative subject and the pressure on urban areas is becoming ever more severe, as demonstrated by rapidly increasing urbanisation rates. Government, through the MURD, is very much committed to the task of delivering affordable housing to as many Namibians as possible,” he expressed.
The minister however admitted that due to countless competing priorities, Government is unable to provide houses alone and emphasised the importance of stakeholder support within the housing sector.
“We have been entrusted and have a shared responsibility to our communities to deliver affordable and quality housing with the highest level of commitment to improving the living conditions of our people,” Uutoni said.
The chairperson of the Henties Bay Town Council management committee, Paulus Iimbamba noted that the location of land is part of the council’s plan to decongest the town’s informal settlement of !Goas and Omdel.
“We would really like to celebrate these achievements as a town council because although at a slow pace, we are moving into the right direction of providing decent housing for our residents,” Iimbamba noted.
Elton Goseb, who received a plot, expressed his satisfaction with the town council and ministry for their efforts to continue providing decent housing for the residents of Henties, noting that soon, informal settlements at the town will cease to exist.
The plots are Government-funded at a cost of N.dollars 15 million, and have been surveyed and serviced with water and sewer reticulation.
Source: The Namibian Press Agency