Matlhodi Maseko
Cape Town - The assumption that local governments and provincial departments in the Western Cape are reluctant to build housing for its most vulnerable residents is an often-punted and misleading claim by those in the opposition.
The province’s commitment to building inclusive, social housing is evident by the sheer number of initiatives and financial commitments made by the Western Cape government and municipalities across the province.
Since the DA came into government in the Western Cape, the administration has implemented various housing programmes, such as the Breaking New Ground (BNG), Help Me Buy a Home (FLISP), Serviced Sites, and Free Housing Units programmes.
This is because the provincial Human Settlements Department is committed to ensuring that those people who were previously dispossessed and denied access know the dignity of formal housing and home ownership.
It is no secret that the entire country is devastated by the housing crisis. In addition to those waiting for decades to own a home, new entrants continue to join an already backlogged housing waiting list. The Western Cape government is seeking to change this by following a whole of society approach with co-operation from different spheres of government, communities and the private sector.
The province has committed billions to housing. Through the Human Settlements Development Grant, the provincial Department of Human Settlements received R5.1 billion during the 2022 Medium-Term Expenditure Framework to provide affordable homes, implement land release programmes and develop serviced sites – and the results are showing.
The Western Cape has the highest number of options for social housing in the country to provide affordable, decent rental accommodation in convenient locations throughout cities for those with household incomes of R1 850 to R22 000 a month.
Recently, the City of Cape Town announced its historic Salt River Project – a mixed-use development. History will be made as this development will be right in the heart of the City, close to social and economic amenities. The development will include 216 units of social housing.
In August, the provincial Department of Infrastructure also announced that Site B (Oukamp) in Struisbaai will be transformed into a mixed-use development, which will include BNG, FLISP, and Serviced Site Housing options. These projects are just two examples of many.
However, the province and its local governments are not only planning, they are also delivering.
In Plettenberg Bay, provincial Minister (MEC) of Infrastructure, Turtuis Simmers, handed over houses for 36 families at the Qolweni Phase 3A housing project on August 29. A new Garden Route Municipality and Western Cape Government Social Housing partnership is in the works in George.
MEC Simmers also handed over houses to beneficiaries who were living on farms and informal settlements through phase 1 of the De Hoop housing project in Malmesbury. In accordance with a budget of R56 million, this project is anticipated to provide 395 homes by the end of 2022/23 with 3 468 new housing options upon finalisation.
The Western Cape government has also made significant progress in reducing the title deeds backlog. Since April 2017, 39 500 housing units have been handed over to beneficiaries. The Housing Subsidy System (HSS) estimates the title backlog in the province at 54 000. But due to the HSS not being properly updated by the national Department of Human Settlements, the true backlog could be 31 000.
The Western Cape government has shown its commitment to giving residents the dignity of formal housing, with very little aid from the national government.
The intentional misrepresentation of the DA-run Western Cape government is a tired ploy by organisations such as the ANC to distract from their failures where they govern.
Maseko is the DA Western Cape Spokesperson on Human Settlements
Cape Times