WINDHOEK, July 15– The Namibian government intends to eliminate shacks in informal settlements by upgrading serviced plots with formal structures, an official said Friday.
About 230,000 families across the country reside in shacks in informal settlements, lacking security of tenure and adequate services.
Speaking at a handover of 28 houses under the Informal Settlement Upgrading Pilot Project (ISUPP) in the informal settlement of Goreangab, Windhoek, Namibia’s Minister of Urban and Rural Development Erastus Uutoni said that housing is more than just a basic need, but a cornerstone of national development.
“The houses we are handing over will be a combination of two-bedroom freestanding and one-and-two-bedroom flats,” he said, adding that the houses were constructed in three phases over a period of 12 months, with the final batch scheduled for delivery in April 2025.
According to Uutoni, the government’s priority remains clear that every Namibian deserves a safe, secure and dignified place to call home.
Through the ISUPP, once the pilot project is completed, plans are at an advanced stage to approach other local authorities across the country to replicate the project in their localities, he added.
Launched in June 2020, the ISUPP has already delivered over 700 affordable and quality houses for residents in Windhoek’s informal settlements.
“As a result, houses and housing units built under this project have become very popular and the demand has skyrocketed, which prompted us to look at our priority areas and devise measures to increase the housing stock under this project,” he said.
Queen Kamati, mayor of Windhoek, also underscored the ISUPP’s pivotal role in replacing “silver houses” (shacks) across Namibia.
“The pilot project, once matured in its testing phase, will be rolled out across the country,” she added.
Namibia faces challenges outlined in its 2023 National Housing Policy to provide adequate housing and sanitation for over 300,000 households, predominantly low-income households excluded from the formal housing market.
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