The accessibility to decent housing improves people’s lives and mental health, while also creating a conducive environment in which communities can thrive. In this vein, the National Housing Enterprise (NHE) yesterday housed 60 families in Windhoek in the Samora Machel constituency in the Greenwell Matongo settlement.

The 60 houses were constructed under a pilot project and smart partnership between the urban and rural ministry, Khomas Regional Council, NHE and the City of Windhoek.

The project was launched around August 2020. The 60 houses are just an addition to the houses already completed and handed over. So far, the informal settlement-upgrading programme has delivered over 570 houses, constructed by the NHE and CoW in various informal settlements of Windhoek.

Handing over the houses, urban and rural development minister Erastus Uutoni urged beneficiaries to ensure they honour their monthly payments for their houses so that the same repayments can be used to build more houses for their fellow residents.

Uutoni stated the housing policy is also in its final stages with a few more consultations.

Currently, he said, CoW and NHE have identified a fully serviced area in Goreagab to build houses under N$350 000 for the middle-income group.

According to the Namibia Country Private Sector Diagnostic (CPSD) report, launched by the World Bank last year, more than 30 000 housing units are required per annum to clear the backlog of 300 000 houses over the next 10 years.

One of the solutions presented is effective public-private partnerships that can help rebuild the local construction sector’s capacity and stimulate linkages with the manufacturing sector.

- mndjavera@nepc.com.na