N Mokonyane to table Housing budget, 9 Jun

9 June 2006

Gauteng MEC for Housing Ms Nomvula Mokonyane tables the Budget for the
2006/07 financial year today. The budget will help the department to deliver on
its mandate through different programmes.

MEC Mokonyane said the Department is happy with the allocated budget of
R2,081,462 billion and will enable them to perform and deliver on its mandate.
“Owing to the response we received from communities through our outreach
programs, this financial year we will refocus and align our programmes and
strategies so that we can achieve optimal results and be able to respond to
various needs and challenges,” said Mokonyane.

The MEC said the department’s plan this year is to speed up delivery by
focusing on those projects and programmes that will give us high and visible
impact in the shortest period.

This will also include speeding up the process of formulating a policy on
inclusionary housing to cater for the lower middle-income market which has not
been benefiting from both government and private sector financial schemes.
Through this policy the department seeks to promote the racial and class
integrated settlements in the province.

“In terms of this policy the commercially driven developments will be
required to allocate a certain percentage value of the total price range of the
project for affordable housing for the lower middle-income group,” emphasised
Mokonyane.

For this financial year in addressing the issue of the rental accommodation,
the department has launched a Backyard Upgrade Programme. This programme will
see the replacement of backyard shacks with proper structures. The intention is
to regularise the erection of backyard accommodation for rental and normalise
the landlord-tenant relationship. The project is currently piloted at Orlando
East Soweto and Boipatong in the Vaal with a total of 720 units with two
bedrooms each.

The MEC said as part of affordable rental accommodation, hostels in the
province will undergo serious transformation with a view to convert them into
family units. This will offer the tenants with tenure options of rental or
ownership. In this financial year eight hostels will be targeted for demolition
and or reconstruction in areas such as Diepkloof, Mohlakeng, Helen Joseph and
M2 Nobuhle (Alexandra), kagiso, Madala, MBA and Sausville.

MEC Mokonyane reiterated government’s commitment to rid Gauteng of Informal
settlements by 2014. “The department will be able to eradicate informal
settlements through the delivery of 38 125 units and 133 of 405 informal
settlements can be constructed in situ. This will be achieved through
programmes such as Essential Services, Formal Housing, Community Builder
Programme and Peoples Housing Process. “An agreement has been reached with
municipalities that stringent measures should be implemented to curb land
invasions in order to avoid mushrooming of such settlements,” she said.

The MEC also announced that women, youth and the disabled stand to benefit
form all housing infrastructure projects undertaken by the department. “As part
of celebrating and honouring the heroines of the 1956 Women’s march, we have
identified 10 women construction companies so that at the end of the next three
year period they should be able to compete in their own right with established
developers. To this end we have allocated a total of R200 million per annum to
support women empowerment programme.”

As a way of speeding up youth empowerment, the department is considering
increasing the quota allocated to young people.

Enquiries:
Mongezi Mnyani
Cell: 082 602 5358

Issued by Department of Housing, Gauteng Provincial Government
9 June 2006