The Ministry of Urban and Rural Development, in collaboration with the Shack Dwellers Federation and partners, has constructed 57 houses for low-income earners at Gobabis.
At the handover ceremony, Deputy Minister Natalia |Goagoses, reaffirmed the government's commitment to addressing the housing backlog and allowing more citizens a decent life.
|Goagoses stressed that housing is a basic right that every citizen should be able to enjoy.
"Our resources as a government will never be enough to address all our society's needs; we, therefore, encourage other organizations to join the initiative and, by doing so, deliver on the promise of decent housing for our people."
Omaheke Governor Pijoo Nganate applauded all stakeholders for collaborating to address the housing need.
"This collaboration leads to community development and brings people together, united by a common concern and opportunity, and choosing to work together to deliver change, which is what we need."
The Chairperson of the Gobabis Municipality Management Committee, Sylvester Binga, gave assurance that the council was working tirelessly to ensure that residents had a place to call home.
"I would therefore like to reaffirm the support, commitment, and dedication of the municipality of Gobabis towards the Namibia Housing Action Group and in the quest towards providing housing to the members and people in the low-income groups in our town."
On behalf of the sponsors, Ohorongo Cement Marketing Manager Carina Sowden said that "Our partnership enables the Shack Dwellers Program to build more houses throughout the country, which hugely contributes towards Namibia's Harambee Prosperity Plan, giving a true meaning to the slogan we have as partners, From shacks to shelters, together we can achieve more."
Kavangere Mbatjangovasi, a beneficiary, explained that good things come at a cost. "Members paid for the land surveyor, and we serviced this land ourselves with our bare hands. Sometimes it used to feel like punishment, but it was an experience because it was our own land and we were supposed to build our houses, and now we own our own home."
She appealed to the relevant authorities to assist them in electrifying their homes.
The federation, in collaboration with partners, has constructed 618 houses in the Omaheke Region to date.
An additional 30 houses will be constructed through a smart partnership between Standard Bank and Ohorongo Cement following a ground-breaking ceremony during the handover of the houses.