Housing in Southern Africa September 2015

H O U S I N G in Southern Africa

ED’S NOTES

The Govan Mbeki Awards 2015... The prestigious national GovanMbeki Awards 2015 held in Cape Town showcase excellence in the housing sector and acknowledges the top metros, municipalities, provinces and key stakeholders.

THE TEAM

EDITOR Carol Dalglish housing@crown.co.za ADVERTISING Brenda Grossmann brendag@crown.co.za DIRECTOR Jenny Warwick

T he Minister of Human Settle- ments Lindiwe Sisulu took the opportunity, at the Depart- ment’s annual Govan Mbeki Awards, to share her disappointment with delivery of housing in the country. She lashed out at the sector’s institutions and said that she had hoped that during her second term in this esteemed office, the Department could match its previous delivery record under her leadership. This has not happened and it is no secret that the Minister is unimpressed. Hermessage to guests at the event was straight and to the point – “We want to send a strongmessage, espe- cially to our officials and contractors, that there needs to be a change of at- titude in order to fast track delivery.” The workaholic Minister requires that her institutions and those con- tracted to deliver housing recommit themselves and work harder to meet delivery targets. Those who do not love their jobs – are in the wrong ones, and it’s clear that she expects them to move on if they are not onboard! The City of Cape Town picked up the Govan Mbeki Award for Best Community Residential Units in Cape Town. The City’s refurbishment proj- ect comprises upgrading 7 500 units. At Kewtown, 320 units have improved the living conditions of residents in some of the most volatile areas in the city. Another notable City of Cape Town project is the massive ceiling retrofit initiative. The project has installed 8 000 ceilings in homes at a cost of R116 million. The majority of the units are state subsidised houses built between 1994 and 2005. With an estimated 40 000 state subsidised units inCape Townwithout insulation this will require massive funding. Leading black-owned engineer- ing firm GIBB was appointed by the KwaDukuza Municipality to as- sist in the upgrade of the informal settlements of Etsheni and Njekane through the construction of 1 980 low income houses and municipal services. The City of Cape Town has urged

potential buyers of fully subsidised BNG/RDP houses to make sure that the houses they are buying can be legally sold. In accordance with the National Housing Act, housing ben- eficiaries are prohibited from selling their properties within the first eight years, unless the provincial depart- ment has approved the sales. Good news at Joe Slovo, the City of Cape Town’s Electricity Services Department has successfully com- pleted an infrastructure upgrade that was necessary to allow for the next phases to commence on the mega housing project. We welcome your news, product information andprojects that are roll- ing out - email: housing@crown.co.za Enjoy the read!

PUBLISHER Karen Grant DESIGN

Colin Mazibuko CIRCULATION Karen Smith

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Carol Dalglish • Editor

AVERAGE CIRCULATION (FIRST QUARTER 2015) 3768

Govan Mbeki Awards 2014 - Best Media - Housing in Southern Africa

September 2015