Infrastructure
What is his Department’s plan to bring dignity to (a) citizens living in shacks, (b) the homeless, (c) backyard dwellers and (d) citizens on the housing waiting list?
- All qualifying Western Cape citizens are encouraged to register themselves on the Western Cape’s Housing Demand Database (WCHDD), irrespective of where they live, in order to qualify for housing subsidies and assistance (including free housing). The Department and all Western Cape Municipalities actively and continually encourage all qualifying Western Cape citizens to register themselves on the database.
- A total of 40 projects will be funded by the Department’s 2023/24 Informal Settlements Upgrade Partnership Grant (ISUP-G) Business Plan, amounting to
R 505, 998 million. These projects are all at different stages of project preparation, planning, or implementation. Implementation plans bring about the installation or upgrading of services to include access to clean water, sanitation, and electricity, and in other cases access to basic services on a shared ratio basis. 10 of these projects are in the implementation stage and will deliver 2007 serviced sites; 3 projects are currently activated for receiving interim basic services, and the rest of the projects are in the packaging stage for delivery over the Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) period.
Residents who reside in informal settlements are also able to register their housing needs on the Housing Demand Database.
- The mandate to assist the homeless lies with the Department of Social Development, who ensures that a comprehensive network of social development services is provided to assist the homeless. This includes fully or partially funding Non-Governmental Organisations that work directly to get people off the streets and to empower them with skills-training, uniting them with their families and integrating them into society.
Citizens in need of housing assistance including homeless people may register
their need for housing on the housing demand database.
- Backyarders, whether located within formal neighbourhoods or informal settlements are encouraged to register their need for housing on the housing demand database. Backyarders are deemed as tenants in a ‘rental agreement’ with a landlord. As a result, the relationship between the two parties is governed by the agreement entered by these two parties, and not the Department. However, to ensure fair treatment of backyard tenants, the Department provides legal support via its Rental Housing Tribunal, with its main function being to settle disputes between tenants and landlords.
- Citizens in need of housing assistance must register their need for housing on the municipalities’ housing demand database (HDDB). Municipalities are responsible for beneficiary selection, are required to approve selection policies which comply with the Framework and must use the municipal HDDBs in undertaking beneficiary selection.
The housing backlog in the province is in excess of 694 826 in the Metro and 336 184 in the non-metro, with most of the applicants residing in the metro. Based on the current quantum it will require an enormous budget to clear this backlog. Therefore, the Department has encouraged municipalities to develop allocation policies that are aligned with the Provincial and National selection framework, thus ensuring that beneficiaries that have been waiting the longest are assisted first while also prioritising vulnerable groups. To assist municipalities in this regard, the Department developed a Policy Framework, which lays out the norms and standards for beneficiary selection for human settlement projects in municipalities.