Scarcity of land in KDM

The scarcity of land is the biggest challenge to the provision of housing within KwaDukuza municipal area.

Building low cost homes in KwaDukuza remains a huge challenge for the municipality and its citizens.

In cases where land is available, the landowners are asking for extremely exorbitant rates.

For the implementation of the current housing projects in the Human Settlements Programme, the municipality needs to acquire land for R59 million over the next four to five financial years.

Meanwhile, there are landowners who have regarded shack farming an an income-generating activity and they continue to do so without providing basic services like water and sanitation.

In most instances, these people (the tenants) continue to live in the vicious circle of poverty, under squalid conditions and powerlessness.

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Then this necessitates KwaDukuza municipality to become proactive in providing decent living conditions for these community members.

Meanwhile, a presentation done by Gavin Adlington of the World Bank for KDM Infrastructure and Technical Portfolio Committee on August 17, showed that nationally some 4.5 million low-cost-houses have been built.

However, most beneficiaries have not received their title deeds after several years. Many have informally sold, sublet or added extensions informally. Occupants often do not pay rates or other taxes.

Lack of secure title and an affordable system for registering transactions or other changes restricts access to credit, adequate housing, business development and municipal income from rates in lower income areas.

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