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SPEECH BY LN SISULU MINISTER OF HOUSING AT THE OCCASION OF THE CLOSING AND THE HANDING OVER CEREMONY OF KEYS TO BENEFICIARIES OF THE WOMEN PARTNERSHIP BUILD 12 August 2005 Protea Glen, Soweto
Master of Ceremonies It has been a real privilege to occupy the position I occupy right now, how else would I have been exposed to experiences like these where women and men will give up their time at work or more importantly, their time with families to come and build houses for those less advantaged than themselves. It is an experience so rich it defies description. Thank you to all of you for inspiring me to make this pledge today, that every year for the week of 9th of August the National Department of Housing together with the Provincial Housing Departments will go out and do what you have taught us is possible: to build houses for women. Not only is it the right thing to do, I am certain they will emerge from the experience as enriched as I am certain all of you have been; as enriched as I have been. I have learnt a great deal from being here. I have learnt how difficult it is to build on the first day; how difficult it is not to lean on the profile that I learnt from the Nedbank team that there were such wide spaces between their bricks was because they measured them with a man’s. Above all that, I learnt that our strength as women lies in our capacity to build each other. I was fortified by you. I was encouraged by you, even though on the first day I only laid two bricks, you declared me a competent builder and my ego soared, and as you know I came back the following day to ensure that I could cement that little ego. And today I feel fulfilled because you gave me the opportunity to be part of this great gift to women. Today the staff of Housing both nationally and provincially, walk with a spring in their step because they have achieved something. You made it possible. I have resolved on their behalf therefore that Women Build should be something we work towards every year. We would want to institutionalize the month of August as the climax of our work, the month in which we build to empower women, to restore their dignity. For us therefore this will be the highlight of our work. I am certain after this no constructor will have to want to be paid for their work! We will concentrate on building for women because we believe that it is through creating a secure living environment for women that we provide a home for the young of this country. Ultimately we are convinced that the home is where we plant the seeds of the kind of society we dream of: a society whose values and aspirations will compliment the great sacrifices that brought our country to where it is now. In the 1950’s the all-embracing struggle was that against oppression. The determined march by women has been mortalised in August 9. we are involved in a new struggle now, the struggle against poverty. You are all familiar with the circumstances that people without homes live in. The extreme poverty, the exposure to the elements, the degradation and vulnerability of the women and girls. These people live in on the fringes of society cut off from the even the basic services that they are entitled to, cut off from all the social amenities that give meaning to life. They live in conditions totally unacceptable in present day South Africa that has committed itself to creating a better life for all. It is for this reason that we have determined that in ten years there should be no shacks in South Africa. We have fought against inequality and exclusion, there is no reason why we should not continue that fight, especially as the bulk of those who suffer inequality and exclusion are women and children. Every effort put into this helps us realize our dream. Every house that is built means one women’s dignity and privacy ensured, it means one more family rescued from the cycle of poverty, one more girl child rescued from vulnerability. An NGO that would be known to some of you known as the South African Homeless Peoples Federation gave me a few days ago the honor of inputting a foreword into its publication titled Informal Settlement Profiles within the Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality. This is a publication on informal settlements that in the South African context is riveting. It is rich in insight perhaps indicating that the research was not at the desktop or libraries but that it was collected directly from the places that are being spoken about in the publication. (And this of course, I may add is something I regard as crucial to any research product). I am certain that when many of you lay your hands on the publication that you will have the same impression. The publication will shock you in its detail. It has the following quotation that I would like to quote to you (and perhaps here the publishers will forgive me for quoting before the actual publication has been done).
“Take a look at the official map of any city in Africa.
It can be Dakar or Cairo, Nairobi or Harare – even Johannesburg.
You won’t notice it, but these maps do not give you the whole
picture. They leave out the neighborhoods that house at least 35%
of the city’s population – in some cases as much as 70%. Official
maps eradicate informal settlements with an efficiency that (for
totally different reasons) slum clearance boards and the
architects of the Millennium Development Goals can only envy. The map-makers of Nairobi, for example, have been able to make Kibera disappear. The largest slum in Africa and the streets and houses that cater for over 750,000 people appear as a black hole on the edges of adequately detailed layouts of Nairobi’s formal suburbs. The same applies to Kisenyi in Kampala, Mbayani in Blantyre, Old Fadama in Accra, Cambamba in Luanda … The list of urban black holes in Africa is impressive.” In account of this it says: “This document and the work that has gone into its compilation represent an attempt to fill the gaps that pothole the formal maps of the city of Johannesburg – to make visible that which society has tried to hide”. I know that I have natural allies in my struggle. I have committed allies in our common vision which in the words of Habitat for Humanity we can create a world where every person has a decent place to live in. Thank you Habitat for creating the environment where we can all play our part. You have been an invaluable partner for a good cause. I have noted your latest additions, the houses you built with Msobomvu. My special gratitude goes to Women for Housing. This network which started informally in 1995 now occupies a significant position in housing in South Africa. It has been an incredible source of support for all women Ministers of Housing. It has been an incredible source of inspiration and support for all new women arrivals in this sector. May they continue their work because with every qualified women builder we are assured of excellence. Women by their very nature are blessed with such sensitivity that in this industry it is unheard of for women to produce shoddy work. To all our sponsors, the banks, I continue to be uplifted by the support I have had from you. Our relationship can only augur well for this country. The relationship certainly augurs well for me. I will certainly not deny that I am attracted to you for your money. To Rand Water, your generosity was evident, but of course I understand too that one more house means one more client. But for now you have helped me remove three families from our backlog and I am certain your motives are honest like mine. Thank you. Jet Stores, I sincerely hope you will help show the way for many in your sector. The retail sector employs the second highest number of people from informal settlements outdone only by the mining sector. If we could persuade others to give back to our communities. Thank you for caring, thank you for showing the way. PPC Cement, Marley Roofing, Trees for Africa: We would not be where we are without you. Ernst and Young: I was bowled over by your sponsorship because all of us here are in some way connected to housing. It could only mean that your choice to be with us in this venture stems from your concern for the plight of the poor. Thank you. To all our volunteers: you make me proud to be South African for I know no other people that possess this gift in such abundance – the gift of giving. May this country always treasure and nurture this very rare gift. For me: I have been truly blessed. I thank you very much. |