ZIMBABWE is on course to meet its target of constructing 220 000 housing units by 2025, with 136 850 stands having been fully serviced so far, while 49 150 houses have been constructed and completed since 2021 when President Mnangagwa launched the National Human Settlements Policy.
Overall, the construction sector has created over three million jobs since the inception of the country’s economic blueprint, the National Development Strategy 1.
Presenting the 18th post-Cabinet briefing in Harare yesterday, Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Monica Mutsvangwa, said National Housing and Social Amenities Minister, Daniel Garwe, presented a report detailing the positive impact that the national housing delivery programme has had on the economy.
“The nation will recall that in 2021, Cabinet approved the National Human Settlement Policy with the aim of constructing 220 000 units by 2025. To date, a total of 136 850 stands have been fully serviced. The servicing of 43 605 stands is work in progress. The number of completed houses is 49 150 while 42 706 houses are under construction.
“A total of 3 902 301 jobs were created in the construction sector through servicing of stands, manufacturing of materials, retail and hardware sales since the inception of the National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1).
“The housing sector’s demand for various materials stimulated production of cement, hardware, bricks among a host of other construction commodities,” she said.
The policy is in line with the country’s Vision 2030 of becoming an upper middle-income society and dovetails with other regional and international development policies.
It also provides guidance on all human settlement developments in the country, addressing issues concerning the provision of both on-site and off-site infrastructure prior to construction of houses.
Minister Mutsvangwa said the issuance of title deeds to Epworth residents under the Presidential Title Deeds and Settlement Regularisation Programme had unlocked value for beneficiaries through financial inclusion with the programme set to be extended to different settlements across the country.
She said other initiatives were also in the pipeline to raise funding for housing projects.
“Government would like to inform the public that housing bonds will be floated, which are an alternative method of raising funding for housing delivery. Housing bonds are also a sustainable source of funding for affordable housing guaranteeing consistent and long-term development initiatives.
“Between 2020 and 2021, commercial banks namely CBZ, ZB Bank, FBC, and BancABC accessed a total of US$65 million through lines of credit from Shelter-Afrique.
“These banks have submitted fresh applications as repeat clients for accessing funding for social housing while National Building Society (NBS); Fidelity Assurance Company and three other local property developers have also submitted applications for same funding. These provide opportunities for investors, thus creating stable, predictable and attractive investments returns,” Minister Mutsvangwa said.
The Minister added that under the Rural and Social Amenities Programme, Government was constructing blocks of flats in Rural District Councils to cater for civil servants that are domiciled in the eight rural provinces.
She said the construction of 400 blocks of flats of four storeys each had started in earnest with a pilot project being undertaken in Uzumba Maramba Pfungwe (UMP) in Mashonaland East Province. – The Herald
