Funds provided for housing programme

An injection of funds into Zimbabwe's national housing programme has raised the hopes of working-class people that they might finally own their own homes.

The National Social Security Authority (NSSA), a quasi-governmental pension fund, has set aside Zim $30 billion (US $7.5 million) to help low-income earners acquire houses in urban centres.

NSSA acting general manager, Arnold Takawira, on Tuesday called on the government to provide his organisation with land on which to build, because his social security authority "cannot afford to buy land from private land developers".

"It costs Zim $10 million (US $2,500) to buy a 150 square metre vacant stand, and another Zim $100 million (US $25,000) to put up a decent house. This is costly for working class people who have little or no access to bank loans," he said.

Local Government and National Housing Minister Ignatious Chombo last week authorised city and town councils to annex land surrounding urban centres for housing development.

"We are looking into the possibility of using construction brigades to bring down costs and we have commissioned experts to look into ways of constructing cheaper and durable houses at affordable costs," he added.

Despite several programmes over the years aimed at reducing the housing backlog, there are still more than 300,000 people on the waiting list in the capital, Harare, while Bulawayo, the second largest city, has close to 200,000.

The housing shortage has led to acute overcrowding, and strained water and sewerage supplies. Alongside building more homes, experts have called for investment in infrastructure.

David Hinkins, country director of Heritage Zimbabwe, an NGO providing low-income housing, said the fragmented approach by the government, the private sector and NGOs had constrained housing delivery.

"We need to pool resources and focus our attention at finding ways to overcome spiralling building costs, which make it difficult for low-income earners to build houses for themselves," he explained.

Babra Kohlo, executive director of Habitat International Zimbabwe, an NGO involved in assisting rural, resettled and urban people to build houses, said cooperation between the various stakeholders was necessary for the success of the programme.

"The government can assist in servicing stands and putting in infrastructure, such as roads and water," she said. "People also need security of tenure on land allocated, for them to be able to build houses on their own."