A TOTAL of 60 women will be proud owners of their new Breaking New Ground (BNG) houses next week when the Deputy Minister of Human Settlements Zou Kota-Fredericks and North West MEC for Human Settlements visit Itsoseng township.

The housing handover is part of the activities organized by government to celebrate the Women’s Month in honour of the women who marched to the Union Buildings in 1956 against pass laws.

The Deputy Minister and MEC Galaletsang Gaolaolwe will be joined by Mayor of Ditsobotla Local Municipality, Daniel Buthelezi.

Details are as follows:

Date: 29 August 2016

Time: 09:30 am for 10:00 am

Venue: Living water ministries hall, Zone 3,

Itsoseng (near petrol station)

To RSVP contact Tebogo.Mosima@dhs.gov.za

For enquiries contact: Ben Bole on 071 566 1399 or Isaac Skhosana on 081 495 2222

Issued by NDHS: 26 August 2016

CAPE TOWN - A TOTAL of 117 116 title deeds have been delivered to beneficiaries of Government’s low cost housing programme over the past two financial years, says Estate Agency Affairs Board (EAAB) chief executive officer Bryan Chaplog.

Briefing the Portfolio Committee on Human Settlements in Parliament on progress made in the eradication of the current backlog, Chaplog said the next two financial years would see “a waterfall of delivery” on this “very important and emotive issue”.

“All systems are in place. We expect to deliver 271 048 title deeds by the end of March 2017. This is made up of the backlog as at July 2014 and projects delivered thereafter,” he said.

The EAAB, which is tasked to project manage the eradication of the backlog by the Department of Human Settlements, said the institution had divided the title deeds programme into two, the pre-1994 stock and the post 1994-stock.

The pre-1994 stock – which has been prioritised for eradication by 2017 - was made up of a backlog that totalled 83 628 title deeds whilst the post 1994 stock was 734 429, bringing the total backlog to 818 075.

Members of Parliament (MPs) however expressed concern about the pace of delivering title deeds in the country, arguing that the processes could be speeded up “dramatically”.

Acting Director-General in the Department of Human Settlements Neville Chainee said the Department and everybody else needed to remain optimistic based on the progress made given the historical inherited backlog.

“We will fall on our swords if we have to. There is a sense of urgency on our part and we are taking responsibility for this. The reality is that we are starting from a very low base,” he said.

The National Department of Human Settlements had to take a more interventionist and activist role if it was to achieve these targets, Chainee told the Portfolio Committee.

ISSUED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SETTLEMENTS

For more information please contact Xolani Xundu at 083 788 5747

The Ministry of Human Settlements warns members of the public of fake linkedin and facebook accounts which purport to be that of Minister Lindiwe Sisulu.

We would like to warn members of the public not to be misled by these fake accounts which sometimes promise people tenders, work and economic opportunities within human settlements sector in the name of the Minister.

Members of the public are advised to note the following:-

• There are five linkedin accounts under the username Lindiwe Sisulu. All of these accounts on linkedin are scams.
• Facebook has 10 accounts under the username Lindiwe Sisulu. Out of this 10 there is only one legitimate account which has an underscore in between the user name, i.e Lindiwe_Sisulu.

The Ministry of Human Settlements has reported these fake accounts to facebook and linkedin and members of the public are advised to block the aforementioned accounts and also report them to the respective social media platform.

We thank those members of the public who continue to be vigilant and alert Ministry of Human Settlements of suspicious activities.

Enquiries:

Tuso Zibula

Cell: 072 127 1565

Date: 07 September 2016

Members of the media are cordially invited to join Human Settlements Minister, Lindiwe Sisulu and the MEC for Human Settlements at the Celebrity Build hand-over ceremony at the Savanna City, in the Sedibeng District Municipality on Friday, 23 September 2016.

Savannah City is one of the Department of Human Settlements’ integrated projects and it straddles at least three municipalities, the District of Sedibeng, Midvaal and Johannesburg.

Savanna City is a R24 Billion project which will yield more than 18 000 integrated units with different tenure options like BNG houses, rental and bonded units when complete.

Celebrity Build programme was launched last year, 2015 where a number of prominent South Africans including actors and musicians participated in the event to show their support for Government’s efforts to improve the lives of people in South Africa.
It is part of Government’s efforts to provide decent housing for needy people and restore people’s dignity by ensuring that they enjoy the right to adequate and quality shelter.

The Minister will be joined by the Deputy Minister of Human Settlements Zou Kota-Fredericks, Executive Mayor of Sedibeng DM, Cllr B. Modisakeng and the Executive Mayor of Midvaal Local Municipality, Cllr. B Baloyi

Department will also embark on a consumer education campaign to educate beneficiaries on how to care and maintain their houses, greening their environment and various human settlements programmes offered by the Department.

Details of the event are as follows:
Date: 23 September 2016
Time: 10:00 am
Venue: Savanna City housing project

For enquiries contact: Ndivhuwo Mabaya 083 645 7838
For R.S.V.P Contact: Tebogo.Mosima@dhs.gov.za

The Minister for Human Settlements Lindiwe Sisulu has noted reports that the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality intends demolishing poorly built double storey units which were constructed without the National Home Builders Registration Council (NHBRC) enrolment of plans at NU29 in Motherwell.

Minister Sisulu would like to remind the newly elected leadership of the Nelson Mandela Bay Metro that the municipality’s housing department remains under a Cabinet intervention and it has no right to make decisions on human settlements or related matters without consulting the other parties to the agreement.

The Minister will be engaging with the other two spheres of government with the aim of ensuring that this matter is urgently attended to and those responsible for this debacle brought to book.

ISSUED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SETTLEMENTS

For more information please contact Xolani Xundu at 083 788 5747

The Department Human Settlements hosts Human Settlements Conference-under the theme “SUSTAINABLE FUTURE CITIES AND HUMAN SETTLEMENTS BEGIN TODAY”

The Department of Human Settlements in partnership with Nelson Mandela Metro University will be hosting a three day conference in Port Elizabeth from 5 -7 October 2016.

 The aim of the conference is to bring interdisciplinary debate and thinking on new approaches perspectives and cutting edge technologies and practices that can bring about transformation of cities and settlements.

More than four hundred delegates from different stakeholders in the industry will attend the conference which will also create a preliminary databank of the existing human settlements research priorities, projects, research capacity and launch a learning network for the research community in the country.

N.B.  

The conference will be preceded by a Media Briefing, Journalism Academy and visit to housing projects in Port Elizabeth on the 05 October 2016.  

For R.S.V.P please contact Tebogo Mosima at Tebogo.Mosima@dhs.gov.za /012 444 9138 or Botshelo Selogilwe at Botshelo.Selogilwe@dhs.gov.za  012 444 9137

For further information please contact Ndivhuwo Mabaya 083 746 7838

Details of the event are as follows:

Date:  5-7 OCTOBER 2016

Time: 9:00

Venue:  Boardwalk Hotel, Port Elizabeth. 

Issued by Human Settlements:  26 SEPTEMBER 2016 

Port Elizabeth: The Minister of Human Settlements, Lindiwe Sisulu, MP, has told delegates at the Inaugural Human Settlements Conference that her Department, working together with the Department of Higher Education and Training will develop a model to assist in increasing student accommodation around universities.

The Minister added that she would be meeting with Developers and Private investors and owners of buildings in the inner cities to work out a plan and model. "As Government we believe that some of the rundown buildings in our inner cities can be used for accommodating students, we believe this can be a chance for young developers to enter the property market. We are working on this as an urgent project, l have asked the Director General to work with the Director General of Higher Education and Training on how we can do this".

Addressing the conference the Minister confirmed that all submissions made on Catalytic Projects have been reviewed and independent assessment of projects is almost done and an announcement will be made before the end of the year after submitting the report to Cabinet.

Minister also challenged the University of Nelson Mandela to conduct urgent research on change of ownership in the Government subsidised housing sector. "I am very concern that initial results of our desk top research suggest that many of our beneficiaries are selling their houses, some illegally and legally, our legislation is clear, you need to live in the house for more than 8 years", she added.

The conference is reviewing policy launched in 2004 towards the finalization of the National White Paper on Human Settlements. It is attended by political leaders, academic, practitioners, NGOs and senior government officials

The Minister also indicated that the National Department assisted by the Housing Development Agency (HAD) and the National Home Builders Regulatory Council (NHBRC) will continue to support all municipalities. "Our priority is ensuring that the grant transferred to Metros and Municipalities is used and accounted for, we also prioritise ensuring that all of them have skills and capacity", she added.

The two - day conference currently underway in Port Elizabeth is organized by the Nelson Mandela Metro University and the National Department of Human Settlements, the Nelson Mandela Metro, and all institutions.

Enquiries

Ndivhuwo Mabaya, Head of Communications

Mobile: 0836457838

Following the robust discussions during the inaugural National Human Settlements Conference that took place from 6-7 October in Port Elizabeth, Eastern Cape, the delegates who attended the Conference from the academics, industry experts, government and private sector, came up with a declaration which aimed to systematically reflect on housing and human settlements development in South Africa, identify and showcase good practices, assess challenges and provide tangible and sustainable solutions.

The Conference’s academic content, driven in the main by quality assured papers and Plenary Speeches, has been enriched by sound advice and meaningful participation of subject-matter experts in institutions of higher learning and housing authorities in countries such as the USA, Germany, Colombia, Nigeria, Kenya, Brazil, Canada, UK and others.

The Conference committed on the following;

Focused research, coordinated by the Chair for Education in Human Settlements at the Nelson Mandela Metro University NMMU, prioritising:

• The illegal sale and real occupants of government-funded houses,
• Housing subsidies revolving within single households,
• Quantification of housing demand from 40 years of age and above,
• Demographical profile of ownership patterns in the property management sector, patterns of financed-linked housing allocation in the middle and upper-income levels of the residential property market,
• Extent of rental accommodation need in university towns and devising appropriate responses.

The conference also noted the following:

Despite this massive delivery of government supported housing programmes the housing need is still huge and increasing parallel to government investment in the residential property market.

While decisive interventions are made in addressing informality and housing inadequacy other factors such as unemployment, poverty, unavailability of suitable and well-located land, illegal selling of low-cost housing, under-performing affordable housing sector continue to influence the housing demand.

The pace in which science, technology and building innovations are embraced by provinces and municipalities continues to be slow, thereby exerting pressure on the conventional methods of housing delivery and human settlements development.

Public participation in human settlements planning and implementation remains weak, and a top down approach to development management prevails, thereby depriving the human settlements sector the opportunity for communities to own, protect and nurture their homes and neighbourhoods

Capacity across all spheres, in terms of knowledge, skills, resources, appropriate systems, culture and ethical conduct, is a critical success factor for sustainable human settlement development, with some municipalities lacking in this regard.

A public discourse, education and awareness raising towards a decolonised narrative for human settlements, neighbourhoods and cities that reflect the rich diversity of races, culture, beliefs, heritage and Africanism is lacking.


For further information please contact Ndivhuwo Mabaya 083 645 7838

Issued by Human Settlements: 9 October 2016

“What has been achieved by the Government and the people of South Africa is a miracle, no one else in the world can claim what we have achieved, over 4.3 Million houses and opportunities delivered since 1994 providing shelter to more than 20 Million people, the world is learning from us, we are number one in the world” Minister Sisulu.

Minister Sisulu leads South African delegation to UN HABITAT III to share South African successes with the world

Ecaudor, Quito, Delegates at the at the Third United Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III) South Africa for prioritizing provision of decent housing and community infrastructure for the poor.

Minister of Human Settlements, Lindiwe Sisulu, MP, is leading a South African delegation to share the successes and experiences of South Africa at the scheduled for 17-20 October 2016 in Quito, Ecuador.

Habitat III is hosted by the United Nations every 20 years to secure a renewed global commitment to addressing housing and sustainable urbanisation through the adoption of a forward-looking, action orientated outcome agreement expected to be implemented by all member states including the Republic of South Africa.

As part of the Conference is a Global Exhibition that is focusing on how countries are addressing urbanisation and broader housing challenges. The South African exhibition which tells the story of the country’s journey from Housing to Human Settlements is one of the most popular exhibition stands. “The South African Pavillion tells a story of how South Africa is addressing human settlements challenges; the number of visitors at the exhibition is an indication of how the world is interested in understanding how we achieved what we have achieved. All our housing institutions, South African Local Government Association (SALGA) and other implementation partners are also part of the exhibition”, said Minister Sisulu.

In preparation for the Habitat III Conference South Africa submitted a National Report on the Implementation of the Habitat II Agenda adopted in 1996 and also contributed to the international preparations by hosting a Habitat III Thematic Meeting on Informal Settlements in April 2016.

The Cabinet approved report submitted to the United Nations raises a number of issues for inclusion in the Habitat III Agenda. These include the importance of understating rural dynamics in accelerating inclusive growth, employment creation and servicing the poor, youth empowerment through education, strengthening integral planning with organs of states, and addressing urban mobility challenges.

Minister Sisulu is accompanied by Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Des Van Rooyen, the newly elected President of the United Cities and Local Government (UCLG) and SALGA Chairperson, Cllr Parks Tau and Member of Parliament and former SALGA Chairperson, Mr Thabo Manyoni.

Minister Sisulu and her delegation will also hold a number of bi-lateral meetings with Ministers from various countries attending the conference.

Enquiries

Ndivhuwo Mabaya
Mobile: 083 645 7838 or Tuso on 072 127 1565
Email: Ndivhuwo.mabaya@dhs.gov.za or Tuso.zibula@dhs.gov.za
Issued by the Ministry of Human Settlements

The Sunday Times has decided to continue spreading the lies which started by the Economic Freedom Fighters in order to make their story juicy and perhaps to also raise their decreasing readership.

We must put it on record again that Minister Sisulu has never visited the said Gupta house and has no social or business relationship with the said family.

The EFF before elections started this rumour to discredit the Minister for their small political gains after they realised they cannot lie about the successes of the human settlements sector.

The Minister is a member of the African National Congress (ANC), its National Executive Committee (NEC) and the National Working Committee (NWC). She is deployed as a Member of Parliament and the Minister of Human Settlements. Her responsibility is to deliver houses to the people of South Africa. The Minister has worked her entire life to improve the lives of all South Africans in many positions the ANC has deployed her.

She is preoccupied with restoring people’s dignity through delivery of houses and is currently attending Habitat III Conference in Ecuador to share with the United Nations Member States the progress made and successes of the South African Government in delivering over 4,3 million houses and subsidies benefitting more than twenty million people since 1994.

Enquiries

Ndivhuwo Mabaya

Mobile: 083 645 7838 or Tuso on 072 127 1565 (text or wattsup messages recommended)  

Email: Ndivhuwo.mabaya@dhs.gov.za or Tuso.zibula@dhs.gov.za

Issued by the Ministry of Human Settlements

Date: 16 October 2016