Remarks by the Minister of Human Settlements, Mmamoloko Kubayi, UN-Habitat, Western Cape, 29 March 2022
Programme director DDG Ngxongo Deputy Minister Pam Tshwete MMC Malusi Booi
Distinguished guests Ladies and Gentlemen Good morning
What we do as government is often buried in the facts and figures and political jargon that in the end conceals what our work, especially in Human Settlements, is really about. Our work is about the people, it is about providing shelter and comfort to the poor, to the elderly and the disabled. It is about changing people’s lives for the better. This means that at all times we need to be asking ourselves the question: are our actions, programmes and policies geared towards the advancement of the goal of attaining a better life for all?
The report that I am receiving today is a reminder that those who are called upon and have accepted the responsibility to provide public service, especially leaders, should never allow themselves to be indifferent to the suffering of others. We should never allow ourselves to think and act in a manner that suggests that there are South Africans who are more deserving of our attention than others. Nobody wants to live in poverty, everybody wants shelter and security. Nobody wants to live in an area where they are exposed to diseases, everybody wants to drink clean water and have access to functioning sanitation facilities.
Thus it is important for us to always take a pause and measure how well or badly we are doing in the services we are providing to our people. Measuring helps us to determine whether we should abandon certain practices or adopt and retain certain practices and improve on them. By its detailed descriptions of best practices, case studies, and specific examples, this report will provide all us with the knowledge of how best to take our work to higher level.
I was also pleased to learn that part of what this report covers are four indicators for the country that include the amongst others the following areas of progress:
- Eradication of poverty in all its forms
- Reduction of inequality in urban areas by promoting equally shared opportunities and benefits
- Achievement of social inclusion of vulnerable groups (women, youth, older persons, persons with disabilities and migrants) and,
- Access to basic services i.e.
- access to safe drinking water, sanitation and solid waste disposal
- access to a safe and efficient public transport system
- access to modern renewable energy
The speed with which we change the lives of the poor will remain an important measure of how well we are doing as Human Settlements team and more importantly, how well our democracy is doing.
The New Urban Agenda (NUA) is about creating a sustainable urban environment that is inclusive and accommodative of all who migrate to cities regardless of race or class. In our country, South Africa, we have to tackle the challenge of rapid urbanization in a context of a history of Apartheid, whose pattern of development was the exclusion of the majority from cities through social and economic exclusion and spatial segregation. Our work as a department, responsible for Human Settlements, is geared towards ensuring
that our cities are more inclusive, liveable and have a sustainable system of integrating the poor into cities to bring them closer to economic opportunities.
Often, when we attempt to build integrated settlements that include social housing to luxurious apartments, we find resistance from the well-to-do even from those who claim to be the champions of the of the poor.
This is phenomenon described by the Slovenian philosopher Slavov Zizek, when he said:
“It is easy to love the idealized figure of a poor, helpless neighbour, the starving African or Indian, for example; in other words, it is easy to love one’s neighbour as long as he stays far enough from us, as long as there is a proper distance separating us. The problem arises at the moment when he comes too near us, when we start to feel his suffocating proximity – at this moment when the neighbour exposes himself to us too much, love can suddenly turn into hatred.”
The poor, just like all us, are just looking for an opportunity to live in a secure, serviced environment with access to economic opportunities, so that they can be able to raise their families.
Indeed, out of the New Urban Agenda countries are expected to localize and implement the commitments outlined within this framework on the basis of each country’s peculiar circumstances. In this regard, the Department of Human Settlements used Urban October Month to kick-start a series of provincial consultations with key sector stakeholders, such as the civil society organisations, community-based organisations, the private sector, professionals, the research, academic communities and the Department of Cooperative Governance. This was done to further engage and expand knowledge on how the New Urban Agenda has been localized in South Africa through the Integrated Urban Development Framework (IUDF) and human settlements programmes and implemented.
Since signing of the UN-Habitat III Pretoria Declaration on Informal Settlement Upgrading in 2016, our country, through an inclusive process, has made tremendous progress in implementing this policy and our approach includes the following steps:
- We started by identifying and verifying informal settlements in the country gathering real-time data, monitoring the growth patterns, so that we could get a better understanding, and planning for, the extent of the challenge we are faced with. Presently, informal settlements are estimated to be over 2600, accommodating about 1.4 million households according to Statistics South Africa estimates.
- We completed a baseline assessment of informal settlements whereby we defined variables for monitoring and evaluating informal settlements.
- We have established Provincial Forums on Upgrading of Informal Settlements in all 9 provinces of the country. The forums facilitate alignment of upgrading processes with all municipalities and monitor progress in implementation, as well as knowledge exchange with various stakeholders in each province.
- To entrench an understanding of informal settlement upgrading among practitioners and public representatives, we have developed a 13-module course called Introduction to Informal Settlement Upgrading, that unpacks the critical processes required for undertaking informal settlement upgrading.
- We are rolling out an intensive capacity development programme to all our provinces, municipalities, civic organisations and communities. Furthermore, we have undertaken activities to ensure that the modules are accredited and incorporated into our tertiary institutions.
- The majority of our informal settlements have access to services. Moreover, municipalities have implemented various methods for security of tenure, such as a Letter of Occupation to informal settlement dwellers. This affords the dweller the opportunity to engage in economic activity and entrenches government’s commitment to dignity for all South Africans.
- We have established our Community of Practice to engage with our civic organisations and academia and share good practice, exchange knowledge, and disseminate information.
With the rapidly increasing urbanisation, we recognise that housing in cities will remain an ever increasing demand. We are confident that the work that we are already doing has gone a long way into alleviating this dire situation. As I receive this report, I am looking forward to reading your objective assessment of how well we have progressed and the impact that the aforementioned initiatives are making towards achieving the urban agenda and SDG 11.
Let me take this opportunity to thank all the stakeholders and teams that worked hard to produce this report.
I thank you.
