BETHANIE – Sanna Mugunda said having a place to call home at last was a lifelong dream coming true.
The pensioner (79) was one of the first eight Bethanie residents who, through the assistance of Jörg Gaugler’s ‘House of Hope’ project, recently occupied their houses.
“This commercial farmer approached us as vulnerable residents in Bethanie and requested us just to solicit funding to an amount of N$15 000 as deposit whereby he will get the rest of the money from tourists, businesses, donor organisations and friends in order to help us build our own houses,” she explained to New Era on a recent visit to the settlement.
Mugunda continued, after selling donkey meat packets donated to her by the local Lutheran pastor, she added the savings from her monthly pension grant to assemble the needed deposit.
She added that, after paying over the deposit, Gaugler provided her with all the building materials to construct her house.
“The local artisans were so kind to help me with the construction and I am forever grateful to them,” she said.
She also said apart from her one son, a police officer in Keetmanshoop, financially supporting her, three more relatives are also staying with her, running a small shop and that, combined with part of her social grant, she can afford to pay her monthly rates and services to the village council.
“I used to stay in a brick house without ablution and electricity services on a farm outside town,” she said. The pensioner also said they have to go to the bush when nature calls and used firewood for cooking and candles for lighting.
They endured cold winters and hot summers as their house structure could not protect them against these nature extremes.
“After the death of my husband I decided to relocate to town to be near basic services like health facilities, hence obtaining a property in town at such an advance stage of my life,” she explained.
Mugunda said she is grateful for Gaugler making it possible for her to live in a decent house with proper ablution and electricity.
Meanwhile, Gaugler informed this publication that, after seeing the housing need and deplorable conditions of shacks these less fortunate are living in, he decided to start the project with the aim to improve their living conditions by moving them from shacks to decent houses with basic services. “The main idea is to restore these citizens’ dignity and allow children to be more willing to attend school from a proper house,” he explained.
The farmer added that apart from the N$15 000 required deposit from beneficiaries, he raised the additional N$42 000 for materials and labour in order to construct these houses.
“This project is exclusive for the lower income and vulnerable citizens of Bethanie whilst government workers and those earning decent salaries do not qualify as beneficiaries,” he said. He also said the aim at the end is to construct 100 houses and expressed the hope that government will come on board as development partner.
When probed for comment, Berseba constituency councillor (under which Bethanie resorts), Jeremias Goeieman commended Gaugler for his initiative, addressing the housing need in the town.
“I want to hereby urge the Bethanie Village Council and //Kharas Regional Council to also throw their weight in on the project.”
He raised the challenge that some people may struggle to get the required N$15 000 deposit and calls on government to look into ways to meet these people halfway.