Master of Ceremonies,
Members of the Executive Councils
Your Worship, Mayor Amos Masondo,
The Chief Executive Officer of the National Homebuilders Registration Council
Representatives of the building industry
Distinguished guests
Ladies and Gentlemen:   

I am certain that for all of us sitting here, this is a culmination of a very successful year. For me personally, this has been an important year for housing in the calendar of our democracy. I am certain that my optimism within the housing arena is felt by many. Not only were we changing housing institutions to focus more on delivery, and with that things are falling in place, the National Homebuilders Registration Council, the youngest of our housing institutions has come of age.  

I remember the pride I felt as I drove to Johannesburg six months ago and there was this great, big advertisement, indicating that the National Homebuilders Registration Council had moved. God only knows where they were moving to.  I can only assume they were moving from Alex to Sandton.  Maybe that is the only way their more affluent members can get to them.  Anyway, this entity, the NHBRC had moved.  It was not advertising what the National Homebuilders Registration Council was.  It was not the moving part, it was the fact that this entity is now an established fact!  Pity about the fact that the advertisement was such a boring advert that has been allowed to intrude on our view: just make sure next time that you have an attractive advert (my apologies to the agency that produced it).  

The vision of a society living in security and comfort that we consistently upheld throughout from the Freedom Charter is now realizable. A blueprint exists to end the rows upon rows of matchboxes with numerous gaping holes and falling roofs that harm our economy and deny our people their dignity. Signifying the work of parasitic and unscrupulous contractors these shoddy houses raise the spectre of a severe crisis, even without the threat of the event of a strong natural disaster.

You are all very familiar with the level of shoddiness in our low income houses.  It has become legendary.  Around the months of June and July it became quite fashionable for the public broadcaster and Etv to show the terrible condition of houses built.  In fact, I began to think that whenever they ran short of programmes, they would resort to clips on shoddy houses countrywide.  But you and I know without having to rely on television, that some of the work we have produced is appalling.  Even without Minister Trevor Manuel having to throw a fit about some housing project in some far flung place, you and I know it has been unacceptable.

Our collective reputation depends on this changing drastically.  The NHBRC has primary responsibility for redeeming our reputation.  I look forward to the NHBRC creating a system where each house can be certified in the same way that cars are certified.  If some beat up old car needs a roadworthy certificate, each house that we build requires the same level of certification.

I was very glad that at the recent Social Contract Indaba in Cape Town, the important issue of a Code of Conduct for contractors was dealt with.  Here all contractors who are signatories to the contract, committed themselves to building with integrity.  How we monitor this compliance will be for the NHBRC to work out.

Having accepted that there is no way we can turn a blind eye to the fact that we sit with a great deal of shoddy work. We have taken a decision to repair that which is shoddily built. 

In this regard I am informed that the NHBRC already has plans to assist Gauteng to conduct a forensic audit of approximately 9000 subsidy houses built from 1994 to 2002. This work will give us the first test of our commitment as government collectively, provincially and nationally, to repair and/ or follow-up on the shoddy work that had been done to date and that has left many of our people feeling despondent. I have no doubt in my mind that the task will be difficult but I am counting on the co-operation of all the stakeholders involved. This is a part of the social contract which is key to enabling us to deliver the kind of quality housing that is fundamental to the dignity of our people: the kind of quality housing that will enable them to enjoy the fruits of liberty.  

We have now adopted a new strategy towards our challenges.  But what is not generally known is that the NHBRC stands at the centre of the implementation of our new strategy.  When we promise our people Human Settlements where there are decent houses, we depend on the NHBRC to set the standard and indeed ensure that what we produce is decent houses.

One of the most interesting things to come out of the work of the NHBRC was a model of what a typical BNG house would look like.  This took into account the quality of the house and the size of the subsidy.  What they have produced is a standard that will become a requirement for all houses we produce.

We have been provided with a model and various designs for low-cost housing that come complete with two bedrooms, a living room, kitchen, shower and sink unit. On the basis of the model, the NHBRC informed us, it was also possible to negotiate a reduction in prices for building materials with the industry within the context of a social contract.  This is what the NHBRC says; it’s been met with deafening silence from building materials suppliers! 

This is so much more important now that we have determined that a house will serve as an asset, the basis of that which will propel our people out of poverty.  For our house to qualify as an asset, certain standards have to be set and met. 

The housing chapter in South Africa has entered a new phase. Even though we remain focused and committed as government to remain an enabler in housing, we are nonetheless, concerned about the quality of housing to our people, in particular the poor. This is because in housing we see the foundation where the hope of our people could be built and sustained over many years.  

 A process to review the National Housing Code to give further impetus to this has been started. The review is being presided over by a Task Team that will have as comprehensive a representation of the different stakeholders in housing as is possible. Fundamentally, the review seeks to align the National Housing Code to the Comprehensive Plan. It would ensure that implementation guidelines are easier to read, are flexible and allow for speedier delivery.   

We have come of age indeed, when within the space of a year I can count no less that three major projects that have been undertaken by the NHBRC. 

Among these, I am pleased to note that the National Homebuilders Registration Council, recently took a decision to go a further distance in helping us implement the Comprehensive Plan.  

The NHBRC will, together with the CSIR, Gauteng Provincial Housing Department, Partners in Housing and a number of important stakeholders be running an innovation hub in Thswane, which is due to open towards the end of this year.  The purpose of the innovation hub is to invite contractors, engineers and other roleplayers with innovative ideas on building and building materials, that would respond to our specific needs in South Africa in building low cost houses. 

We need to test new methods and technologies, responding to the new demands we face.  This is a very important step as we try and break through beyond the traditional modes of building.  We might come up with technologies that is specifically South African, I don’t know, but I look forward to some groundbreaking, but inexpensive innovations and technologies. 

The second important project that the NHBRC is involved in, is one that responds to my direct plea at the People’s Parliament in Kliptown, asking for partnerships with the youth, indicating to the youth that we would provide them with skills, so that together, we can build houses for the elderly, the disadvantaged and the vulnerable.   

In Limpopo, near Bela Bela, it has identified the land that is necessary to implement the Youth Letsima. To those who do not know about the project, this is a project that we conceptualized to help the youth attain training to get employment by developing skills in various aspects of construction. The project is being implemented in conjunction with the National Youth Commission, including the Umsobomvu Youth Fund, the South African Youth Council, Municipalities and various other government departments. For its first phase it will be implemented in the three provinces of Limpopo, Western Cape and Mpumalanga. Accordingly, its focus is on unemployed young people. We envisaged that the project will in all take three years with an envisaged nine months implementation within provinces. This will serve the purpose of also training for construction skills.  I am informed that we are likely to see very interesting results of a subsidy house that measures 60 square metres.  We look forward to that. 

The third project the NHBRC is involved in, is a joint project with the Department of Labour, where we would be running a vocational school.  One of the biggest challenges we face in this country is unemployment and if we can provide skills within this area, together with the projected growth in this industry, I am certain that we will be able to absorb a great deal of the unemployed.  This is what makes the area of housing so vital.  Through it, not only are we addressing the issue of shelter for all, we are also addressing the critical issue of unemployment and poverty alleviation in the most fundamental way. 

I would like to use this opportunity to really acknowledge the contribution of the NHBRC and to thank them for their commitment, their energy and their support.  Nobody asked me for my opinion, but I would have wanted to nominate the Chief Executive Officer for the first prize. 

As the report of the Human Sciences Research Council titled The State of the People warns us about the necessity to do this in the following way: 

‘In a democracy that is still in a process of consolidation a decline in confidence in government capacity to deliver to satisfy people’s needs – especially if the decline is linked to poor government performance – can have a dramatic impact on democratic values. In such circumstances it may be very difficult to sustain democratic institutions’. 

We call on each and everyone to help sustain institutions such as the National Homebuilders Registration Council which are necessary to build the confidence of our people. In addition, we trust that those who have signed the social contract with us will stay the course as we scale delivery from the beginning of 2006, using the models and the designs provided for by the National Homebuilders Registration Council. An occasion such as this provides all of us with the opportunity to observe the recognition for our respective contribution to the achievement of the goal of a better life for our people. We wish all of those who are yet to make these recognizable strides be encouraged to do more and more. May our country, through your efforts, continue to enjoy the recognition of our peers internationally in addressing the challenges of providing sustainable and quality human settlements. 

Finally, allow me to congratulate all those whose hard work and dedication we will be rewarding tonight. 

As South Africans, black and white, rich or poor, let us continue to work together to achieve greater results in the second decade of our freedom!