Urban centres get new housing units

ISAIAH MOREWAGAE
Staff Writer | Wednesday March 24, 2010 00:00

 

The Minister of Lands and Housing, Nonofo Molefhi said during the budget proposal for his ministry in Parliament on Friday that the project will be completed in July . He told Parliament that the Botswana Housing Corporation (BHC) will complete the construction of 1,094 new housing units in the country by the end of the month. Of these 41 units have been completed; 30 in Francistown and 11 in Maun. Another 953 units are nearing completion in Francistown (545) and Gaborone 408. Molefhi said that the construction of an additional 896 houses has started in Gaborone (324 units), Serowe (372), Jwaneng (126) and Selebi-Phikwe (74). 'The houses will be completed during the coming financial year. Preparations are at an advanced stage to commence additional housing units in Ghanzi (206), Gaborone (525) and Mahalapye (235) before the end of the financial year,' Molefhi said.

The minister told Parliament that his ministry is faced with challenges like transfer of land from Batswana to non-citizens.  This results in self-dispossession of land by citizens including primary residence. 'Measures will be put in place to prohibit transfer of residential property where such a property constitutes the primary residence of the allottee,' Molefhi said.He added that consideration will be given to subjecting the transfer of both tribal and state land to non-citizens to the Land Control Act. The Act requires the minister's consent before such plots can be transferred. 'This is currently being done with freehold land,' the minister said. He acknowledged that his ministry is faced with the challenge of high cost of infrastructure and failure by contractors to deliver projects on time.

'The cost of providing infrastructure to service BHC estates is borne by the corporation alone. There is therefore need to consider bringing on board other parastatals such as Water Utilities Corporation and Botswana Power Corporation to share costs of servicing land for housing development,' Molefhi said.