MSINGA MUNICIPAL HOUSING PLAN
1. INTRODUCTION:
1.1 Isibuko se-Africa (in association with SRK Consulting) was appointed, in January 2007, to assist the Msinga Municipality with the preparation of a Municipal Housing Plan.
1.2 “Housing” refers to an integrated approach to development with the primary focus being on the delivery of shelter. As indicated in Figure 1 below, housing includes, among others, the development of housing units, service delivery, the upgrading of land tenure rights, social and community development and planning policy issues. Future housing projects should aim to achieve all of these development goals.
Figure 1: Housing Concept
SUSTAINABLE HUMAN SETTLEMENT
Shelter
CommunityFacilities PovertyAlleviation NATION BUILDING NATION ServiceDelivery
DEVELOPMENT INTEGRATED INTEGRATED Land TenureLand JobCreation EsteemSelf
Policy Legislation Programmes Budget
SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT
Housing delivery within the Msinga Municipal Area occurs mainly in the form of state funded, low cost housing in which the municipality serves as a developer.
1.3 The purpose of the National Housing Code (March 2000 is to set out clearly the National Housing Policy of South Africa. It identifies the primary role of the municipality as taking all reasonable and necessary steps, within the framework of national and provincial legislation and policy, to ensure that the inhabitants within its area of jurisdiction have access to adequate housing on a progressive basis. This entails the following:
Initiating, planning, facilitating and co-ordinating appropriate housing development. This can be undertaken by the municipality itself or by the appointment of implementing agents.
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Preparing a housing delivery strategy and setting up housing development goals. Setting aside, planning and managing land for housing. Creating a financially and socially viable environment for housing delivery. Facilitating the resolution of conflicts arising from housing delivery initiatives. Facilitating the provision of bulk services. Administering national housing programmes. Expropriating land for housing development.
The aim of this plan is to assist the municipality in fulfilling the abovementioned role assigned to it in terms of the National Housing Code.
1.4 The Comprehensive Plan for the Development of Sustainable Human Settlements (August 2004) and the Guidelines for the Implementation of Labour-Intensive Infrastructure Projects under the Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) should also be taken into account. The Comprehensive Plan provides detailed information on the programmes identified by the National Department of Housing. It provides clear indicators of deliverables, time frames and estimated resource requirements. The new “Human Settlements Plan” promotes the achievement of a non-racial, integrated society through the development of sustainable human settlements and quality housing. Housing is to be utilized for the development of sustainable human settlements in support of spatial restructuring.
This plan makes acknowledgements to the existing housing policy and it attempts to enhance the existing mechanism to such an extent that it becomes more responsive and effective in delivery. This includes, amongst others, the following:
Stimulation of the residential property market i.e. the policy intends to expand the number of households that qualify for the housing subsidy e.g. previously a person who qualifies must earn less than R 3 500 pm. The policy states that this household income criteria was based on the assumption that end – user finance would be accessed for the construction of houses by income groups above R 3 500. This has not occurred successfully and there is a growing disjuncture between subsidy and non – subsidy residential accommodation. The policy therefore responds to this issue through proposing a new subsidy mechanism that will facilitate the availability and accessibility of affordable housing finance products/ instruments to medium income households earning between R 3 500 – R 7 000 pm. This mechanism will be linked to households’ savings and loans from financial institutions.
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Collapsing the subsidy bands i.e. the previous three bands was collapsed to such an extent that every individual that earns less than R 3 500 should be considered to access uniform subsidy amount. The previous three bands targeted the R0 – R 1 500 income group to access the uniform subsidy amount while other households that earn between R 1 500 – R 2 500 and R 2 500 – R 3 500 would access less that a uniform subsidy amount.
Spatial restructuring and sustainable human settlement i.e. enhancing spatial planning and the location of new housing projects are one of the critical matters which the policy raises. It is recommended that co – ordination between the three government departments that deal with spatial planning (i.e. Department of Land Affairs, Department of Housing and Department of Provincial and Local Government) is required. The outcomes of such co – ordination should be to develop a single overarching planning instrument to provide macro – level guidance to support the development of sustainable human settlements on well-located land. The policy also encourages progressive informal settlement upgrade within the urban fabric and the promotion of densification and integration.
Social (medium – density) housing programme: the policy intends to facilitate the production of effectively managed institutional housing in areas where a demand exists for housing of this type. It is further emphasised in the policy document that little attention has been paid on categorising rental accommodation in public policy and the broader residential property market. It has in fact become an increasingly important component of the residential property market. This is usually in the form of backyard shacks, student accommodation and granny flats. The necessity of including rental accommodation in public policy will be to have regulation, monitoring and standardization in place. This will in turn provide support through the housing improvement grant to ensure that basic standards are achieved in the provision of rental housing.
Developing the rural housing instrument: the policy makes reference to urban bias and states that in the case of rural areas (on the demand and supply side) the primary intervention needed is the installation of infrastructure rather than housing structures. It is further stated that in the case of rural areas, the key intervention in human settlements must take account of the following: - Comprehensive range of rural housing related issues such as tenure, livelihood strategies and broader socio – cultural issues. - Respond to the needs of farm workers and farm dwellers. - Enhancing traditional technologies and indigenous knowledge, which are being used to construct housing in
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order to improve shelter, services and tenure (if either of these are priorities for the inhabitants there). - Developing an appropriate funding mechanism to support the rural housing programme.
Institutional reform and capacity building: it does not merely focus on education and training but includes organizational development issues such as appropriate institutions, arrangement support, systems and procedures training and adequate resourcing. It will focus on the following institutions: Municipalities, Social Housing Institutions, PHP institutions, Financial institutions and communities.
Housing subsidy funding system reform: The other important aspect that the policy discusses is the adjustment of the housing subsidy in the case of inflation (that might arise due to macro – economic issues) because previously this was ignored and developers decided to ‘pull out’ of projects due to the sudden reduction of profits (when inflation takes place) and this slows down housing delivery.
Housing and Job Creation: the new settlement plan is expected to maximise job creation in various sectors such as the social, economic, housing, infrastructure and management construction sectors.
The EPWP aims at alleviating and reducing unemployment by the provision of work opportunities. The principles/guidelines of the above plan/programme should be taken into account when housing projects are undertaken.
1.5 The National Environmental Management Act No. 107 of 1998 was enacted to ensure that the Constitutional right of individuals, to live in an environment that is not harmful to his or her health or well being, is protected. It therefore purports that development should be undertaken in a sustainable manner. The regulations to the Act (Gazette 28938, Regulation Gazette 8488, 6 June 2006) regulates the procedures for the submission, processing, consideration and decision of applications for environmental authorization of identified activities. The regulations have distinguished between activities that require basic and detailed assessments. In terms of the activities identified the following activity would require a basic assessment to be undertaken viz.
“The transformation of undeveloped, vacant or derelict land to residential, mixed, retail, commercial, industrial or institutional use where such development does not constitute infill and where the total area to be transformed is bigger than 1 hectare”.
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The development of a housing project would therefore require that an environmental authorization be obtained. 1.6 Given all of the above, the approach that has been adopted with respect to the formulation of this plan has been a strategic one, with its main components being as follows:
Optimal Use of Existing Information: A substantial amount of work has already been undertaken with respect to housing in the municipal area. Optimal use was therefore made of the existing information. The Msinga Integrated Development Plan, and subsequent reviews thereof, was used as the base. Other key information sources included the Municipality’s Spatial Development Framework Sector Plan, Msinga Electricity Service Development Plan, Msinga Agricultural Plan, the Umzinyathi Water Service Development Plan and provincial and national literature.
Holistic Approach: Social, economic, physical and institutional factors were taken into account during the project, in order to ensure that housing occurs in an integrated and co-ordinated manner within the municipal area.
Consultative Process: The project involved consultation with a range of roleplayers. Consultation took the form of presentations and discussions at a workshop with the Councillors; interviews with key interested and affected stakeholders (including officials, government department and district municipality representatives). In addition, the final draft plan was presented to Council for consideration and was also advertised for public comment (it should be noted that no public comment was received).
GIS: This has entailed, inter alia, the mapping of all the existing and proposed housing projects.
1.7 Finally, it is noted that this plan has been prepared strictly in accordance with the two guideline documents issued by the provincial Department of Housing to municipalities, namely “Housing Planning Template 2003 - 2006” and “The Department of Housing: Strategic Housing Planning Guidelines for Municipalities 2002”. The plan accordingly provides the following:
an overview of the local context (section 2);
information regarding current housing demand (section 3);
identification of land suitable for future housing development (section 4);
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an overview of the current housing situation (section 5);
information regarding planned projects (section 6);
information regarding integration of housing with other sectors (section 7);
reference to the Msinga Integrated Development Plan’s Spatial Development Framework (section 8);
a set of performance indicators (section 9);
information regarding housing institutional arrangements (section 10); and
a conclusion (section 11).
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2. LOCAL CONTEXT:
2.1 BACKGROUND
The importance of providing assistance to the Msinga Municipality was identified at a national level in that it forms part of an ISRDP node and part of the project consolidate programme. The main aim of these initiatives is to provide support to municipalities to perform their mandate and one of the focus areas is on assisting municipalities in achieving integrated human settlement development. The formulation of the housing plan is therefore also in line with national thinking of providing citizens with access to houses.
2.2 SPATIAL CONTEXT (SEE MAP 1):
The Msinga Local Municipality is located in the central portion of the Umzinyathi District, sharing boundaries with the Endumeni LM to the north, Nquthu and Nkandla LMs to the east, Umvoti LM to the south and Indaka and Umtshezi to the west. It is largely rural in nature with 70% of the area being Traditional Authority land and the remaining 30% is commercial farm land which is located to the north of Pomeroy.
The primary node is Tugela Ferry as it is the main administrative and commercial centre within the Msinga Municipality. It performs a range of services and is characterized by a higher differentiation of land uses. Keates Drift and Pomeroy have been identified as secondary nodes in the municipality. Tertiary nodes have been identified at Msahunka/Nhlalakahle, Mkhuphula/Dolo, Cwaka, Mazabeko Rorkes Drift and Msinga Top.
The municipal area is accessed via. the R33, thus linking it with Dundee, Ladysmith, Pietermaritzburg, Kranskop and Weenen. The R33 is also the only internal road link between the internal “urban” areas of Pomeroy, Tugela Ferry and Keates Drift. Lower order internal roads also exist and forms linkages wit the primary route i.e. R33.
2.3 DEMOGRAPHIC CONTEXT:
Based upon the 2001 Census, the demographic profile of the Msinga Municipal Area is as follows:
Total Population: The total population of Msinga is 168 018.
The graphic below illustrates the spatial distribution of the total population within the municipal area. It is evident that the town of Tugela Ferry and the rural areas in the southern portion have the highest population densities.
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POPULATION DENSITY
Source: http://www.statssa.gov.za/census2001/digiAtlas/maps/ Msinga_map_popdens_KZ244.gif -21 /02/07
Number of Households: There are a total of 32 904 households within the municipality.
Household size: The average household size is 5 persons. It is noted however that some 34% of households in the municipal area comprise 6 persons or more.
Labour Force: Of a total labour force of 23 514 persons (13.99% of the total population), 5 020 (21.35% of the labour force) were employed and 18494 were unemployed. 56 489 people were not economically active.
Individual Monthly Income: 99.34% of individuals in the municipal area (166 914 people) have an income of less than R 3 200 per month – with the majority of these stating that they had no income at all (131 962 people or 78.54%).
Annual Household Income: 31 656 households in the Msinga Municipality have an annual household income of R 38 400 or less (i.e. 96.20% of households). 10 592 of these households (32.19%) recorded no income at all.
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Age Groups: The age group breakdown for the municipal area is as follows: 0-4 years: 24 901 people (14.82%); 5-14 years: 54 100 people (32.20%); 15-34 years: 48 864 people (29.08%); 35-64 years: 30 491 people (18.15%); and over 65 years: 9 662 people (5.75%).
Gender: There are a total of 70 234 males (41.80%) and 97 784 females (58.20%) in the municipal area.
Education Levels: The highest education levels attained by over 20 year olds (67 293 people) are as follows: No schooling: 45 780 people (68.03%); Some Primary: 7 213 people (10.72%); Complete Primary: 1 753 people (2.60%); Some Secondary: 7 090 people (10.54%); Grade 12: 3 824 people (5.68%); and Higher: 1 633 people (2.43%).
Education Institutions being attended by 5 to 24 year olds: Of the 87 076 people making up the 5 to 24 year age group, 2 194 are attending pre-school; 57 759 are attending school; 266 college; 55 technikon; 219 university; 202 an adult education centre and 139 an “other” institution. Of concern is the high number of 26 802 people (30.78%) who are not attending any education institution.
Mode of travel for Work or School: The majority of people travel to work or school by foot (62 125 people). Others travel by bus (552 people); car passenger (1 388 people); minibus/taxi (689 people); car driver (515 people); bicycle (245 people); train (160 people); motorcycle (265 people) and “other” (79 people).
Disability: A total of 7 915 persons within the municipal area have some form of disability (i.e. 4.71% of the total population).
Dwelling Type: Of the total of 32 904 households in the municipal area, 5 794 households reside in formal houses (17.61%), 26 305 households (79.94%) in traditional houses and 438 households (1.33%) in “other” houses.
Number of rooms: 65.80% of households (21 650 households) in the municipal area have a dwelling comprising four rooms or less.
Citizenship: 99,96% of people (167 950 people) in the municipal area are South African citizens.
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The implications of the abovementioned demographic profile for housing in the Msinga Municipal Area are as follows:
The highest population densities are in the town of Tugela Ferry and the rural areas in the southern portion and this is where the demand for housing is likely to be the highest.
21.35% of the labour force is employed – this has serious implications for the sustainability of future housing projects and the ability of household heads to pay for rates and services rendered by the municipality.
The inability of households to pay for municipal services is highlighted again, in that, 99.34% of individuals fall into the low- income level category (less than R3200 per month) and 96.20% of households have an annual household income of R38 400 or less.
The majority of people travel by foot to school and work. Attempts should therefore be made to ensure that the delivery of future housing is located in close proximity to existing work opportunities and education facilities.
A fair proportion of persons in the municipal area have some form of disability (4.71%). The type of disability and the individual’s special needs should be taken into account when housing projects are initiated in the future.
A high proportion of households in the municipal area (26 305 out of 32 904, i.e. 79.94%) reside in traditional houses, 5 794 (17.61%) reside in formal houses and 367 (1.12%) in informal dwellings. The Msinga IDP states that the shelters in traditional areas are inadequate in that most are unable to provide adequate protection from natural elements. The main focus of future housing should therefore be on improving the conditions of those estimated 26 305 households residing in traditional houses in the rural areas.
Some 65.80% of households live in a dwelling comprising four rooms or less. 35.34% of households have more than 5 persons residing in one dwelling. Support therefore needs to be provided so as to enable households to upgrade and extend their existing houses.
Almost all residents of the area (99,96%) are South African citizens. They would therefore meet one of the criteria for qualifying for a housing subsidy.
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2.4 ECONOMIC CONTEXT:
The Msinga Municipal area is classified as being poverty stricken with few economic resources and activities. Social services and private households contribute 29%, agriculture contributes 18%, trade and commerce contributes 11% and manufacturing and construction contributes 10% to the economy of Msinga.
Figure 2: Key Employment Sectors
Key Employment Sectors
120 97.15 100 80 60 40
Percentage 20 0.4 0.03 0.09 0.01 0.12 0.48 0.1 0.07 1.55 0
Agriculture Construction Manufacturing Undetermined Mining/Quarrying Wholesale/Retail Business Services Electricity/Water/Gas Community Services Transport/Communication
The various sectors provide employment opportunities to citizens. However, there number of jobs available is limited and this therefore results in the contribution of these sectors to the Msinga economy being very low/marginal. An issue of serious concern within the municipal area is the high unemployment rate. As highlighted in the demographic profile, only 5 020 people out of a total labour force of 23 514 persons are employed. A further 56 489 people are not economically active. As a result of the unemployment rate annual household incomes are low (with 96.20% of households falling into the low income category).
2.5 SOCIAL CONTEXT:
In order to facilitate holistic living environments, it is critically important that communities have access to a wide range of social services (educational, health, welfare, etc.). In the case of Msinga, residents of Tugela Ferry are generally well provided with a range of social services, however as is the case in all municipalities, residents of the rural areas have access to much more limited services.
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2.6 INFRASTRUCTURAL CONTEXT:
In order to provide an overview of the current levels of basic infrastructural service provision in the municipal area, the 2001 Census results are provided for information below:
Water:
The figure below illustrates the main supply of water to households:
19085 20000 18000 16000 14000 12000 10000 8000 6000 2642 3621 2026 4000 2871141 784 1418 419 711 2000 374 0
Spring Other Borehole River/streamWater vendor Rain water tank
Piped water inside yard Dam/pool/stagnant water Piped water inside dwelling
Piped waterPiped on water community on community stan... stan...
Source: Census 2001
The majority of households rely on natural resources to obtain water (i.e. rivers, dams boreholes) and only 15,4% of households have access to piped water supply. It was further estimated that approximately 300 boreholes are in need of repairs thus further negatively impacting on people having access to the resource. Tugela Ferry, Pomeroy and Keates Drift have water treatment installation facilities present.
Sanitation:
The figure below illustrates the type of sanitation facility utilized by households:
Flush toilet sewer 954
Flush toilet tank 265
Chemical toilet 989
Pit Latrine W/vent 1704
Pit Latrine WO/vent 5978
None 23014
0 5000 10000 15000 20000 25000
Source: Census 2001 12 ISIBUKO SE-AFRICA JANUARY 2008
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Most of the households (23014) do not have access to any form of sanitation infrastructure, 5978 use pit latrines WO/vent and the remainder have access to some form of sanitation facility.
Electricity:
Electricity is only provided in the urban areas of Pomeroy, Tugela Ferry, Mandleni and Keates Drift while the remainder rely on other forms of energy. The figures below illustrates the energy source used by households for cooking and lighting purposes:
Cooking:
30000 27291
25000
20000
15000
10000
5000 1703 1139 1767 468 263 98 174 0 Electricity Gas Parafin Wood Coal Animal Solar Other Dung
Most of the households (82, 94%) utilize wood as a source of energy for cooking purposes. This has a negative impact on the environment due to air pollution. Only 5,17% have access to electricity for this purpose.
Lighting:
226 169 2829 74 812 Electricity Gas Parafin Candles Solar Other 28795
Source: Census 2001
The majority also still rely on candles as a source of energy for lighting.
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3. CURRENT HOUSING DEMAND:
3.1 There are several ways of determining housing demand within municipal areas, including statistical calculations and the establishment of housing waiting lists.
3.2 The Msinga Municipality does not have a housing waiting list in place and as such calculations’ using the Census 2001 statistics was used to determine the housing demand for the municipal area. The information relating to individuals residing in traditional dwellings, house/flat/room in backyard, informal dwelling/shack in backyard and informal dwelling/shack not in backyard was used to estimate the demand for housing.
3.3 It is estimated that there are 26 305 traditional dwellings, 282 house/flat/room in backyard and 368 in “other”.
3.4 In regard to the demand for medium to upper income housing, no calculations have been done for the purposes of this plan. Supply and demand for such housing is determined by the market and it would appear that sufficient opportunities exist for residential infill and expansion in the urban areas in regard to this segment of the market in the five year period covered by this plan.
3.5 Based on the above, the total demand for low cost housing units within the Msinga Municipality is estimated to be 21 694 housing units. (It was agreed between the municipality and the Department that 80% of the number of traditional dwellings be used as the backlog figure i.e. 21 044.)
3.6 It should be noted that the Department of Housing has initiated a process to establish housing demand databases within municipalities. Once this database is in place it will assist the municipality in estimating the demand for housing within their area of jurisdiction more accurately.
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4. LAND SUITABLE FOR FUTURE HOUSING DEVELOPMENT (SEE MAP 2):
4.1 The Msinga Municipality’s Spatial Development Framework (see section 8) ranks areas/towns as different types of service centres. These include the following:
Tugela Ferry - primary node; Keates Drift and Pomeroy – secondary node; and Mashunka,/Nhlalakahle, Mkhuphula/Dolo, Chwaka, Masabeko and Rorkes Drift – tertiary nodes.
4.2 Sites at which housing delivery can take place and which have been identified include the following:
Site 1: Erf 1000 Pomeroy Site 2: Mthembu Site 3: Emvundlweni Site 4: Ezimbomvini Site 5: Ethembeni Site 6: Ngome Site 7: Kwadolo Site 8: Mbono Site 9: Nxamalala Site 10: Mhlangane
4.3 It should be noted that the proposed projects are to cater for rural housing and are located on tribal/traditional authority land (in-situ upgrade).
4.4 In addition, it should be noted that the Land Use Management of the municipality has also identified areas for settlement within Tugela Ferry, Keates Drift, Pomeroy, Msahunka/Nhlalakahle, Cwaka, Mazabeko, Rorkes Drift and Dolo. Should housing projects be undertaken in these areas attempts should be made to locate projects within these demarcated areas.
4.5 The following information is provided in relation to each of the abovementioned sites (see Annexure 1):
location; ownership; access to community and social services; availability of bulk and/or connector services; accessibility in terms of transport and economic opportunities; and linkage to Spatial Development Framework.
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5. CURRENT HOUSING SITUATION (SEE MAP 3a & 3b):
5.1 HOUSING PROJECTS (REFER TO MAP 3a):
There is one current project in the municipal area:
Name of Reference No. Ward No. of Sites Project Value Comments Project Kwalatha K 04120005 8,9 500 R17 024 500 Awaiting Rural approval of Housing settlement plan by DLGTA. No expenditure for MTEF period determined.
5.2 LAND REFORM PROGRAMME (REFER TO MAP 3b ):
There are 6 land reform projects which are currently underway. According to data provided by the Department of Land Affairs they are as follows:
No. Project Name Project Type Project Number No. Size (Ha) of H/H 1 Uithoek/Mngelekazi Labour DC24/KZ244/1 17 320 CPA Tenants 2 Elandskraal Cluster LRAD DC24/KZ241/67 184 3 Craighneathan/Magoso LRAD DC24/KZ244/6 52 475 CPA 4 Baffalo/Simbria LRAD DC24/KZ244/ 45 156 5 Somashi Redistribution DC24/KZ245/19 59 905 6 Sutherland/Buyafuthi Labour DC24/KZ244/7 1280.83 Tenants Source: Department of Land Affairs – Ladysmith Office (23/02/2007)
The programme experienced problems in that a large number of applications were received and the ad hoc manner in which applications were administered. The strategy is being revised by the Department of Land Affairs. It now aims to focus on a project approach as opposed to a single beneficiary approach and will be aligned the National Housing Programme.
With respect to land claims in the area, there is one settled claim and 14 outstanding claims. The settled claim:
Project Name Claim Type Restored Households Land Value Hectares (Rm) Alva Mission Community 710 80 578 000 Community
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The outstanding claims include:
No. Name of Claim Ref No. Status 1 Ngome Tribal Authority KRN6/2/2/E/26/0/0/1,2 & 46/0/0/21 Name Verification 2 Thusi Mbangiswa KRN6/2/2/E/26/0/0/10 Claim Verification 3 Justice Mchunu KRN6/2/2/E/26/0/0/11 Claim Verification 4 Mfiswa Mchunu KRN6/2/2/E/26/0/0/12 Claim Verification 5 Vezi Community KRN6/2/2/E/26/0/0/14 & 13 Name Verification 6 Vikayiph Sithole KRN6/2/2/E/26/0/0/15 Claim Verification 7 Catherine Gasa KRN6/2/2/E/26/0/0/18 Claim Verification 8 Mganeni Lembethe KRN6/2/2/E/26/0/0/3 Claim Verification 9 Ngenisile Ndlovu KRN6/2/2/E/26/0/0/4 Claim Verification 10 Qimuza Mchunu KRN6/2/2/E/26/0/0/5 Claim Verification 11 Sijozini Community KRN6/2/2/E/26/0/0/6 Claim Verification 12 Gugu Mchunu KRN6/2/2/E/26/0/0/7 Claim Verification 13 Jerome Mchunu KRN6/2/2/E/26/0/0/8 Claim Verification 14 Nge Mchunu KRN6/2/2/E/26/0/0/9 Claim Verification
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6. PLANNED PROJECTS (SEE MAP 4):
6.1 MUNICIPALITY’S INTEGRATED DEVELOPMENT PLAN (IDP):
The Draft 2007/2008 IDP Review indicated that housing is considered as a priority issue in the municipality.
6.2 PROVINCIAL PRIORITY HOUSING PROGRAMMES:
The Provincial Minister of Housing identified six priority programmes for the Department for the 2007/2008 financial year. The following programmes are applicable to the Msinga Municipality viz. to accelerate development of houses in rural areas and to facilitate Capacity Building.
6.3 PRIORITY ISSUES, OBJECTIVES AND STRATEGIES:
PRIORITY OBJECTIVE (S) STRATEGIES HOUSING ISSUES To accelerate To provide housing and 1. Ensure Traditional development of services to people living Authority participation. houses in rural in rural areas. 2. Identify potential rural areas. housing projects. 3. Utilize project linked subsidy or Rural Housing subsidy. 4. Implement EPWP and ensure 100% unskilled local labour is used in projects. 5. Promotion of integrated service delivery in rural areas. To facilitate To capacitate 1. Determine municipality’s Capacity Building municipality in capacity constraints in implementing housing terms of housing policies and strategies. delivery. 2. Funding must be sourced to deal with capacity constraints.
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6.4 PLANNED HOUSING PROJECTS 2007/08 TO 2011/12:
PROJECT NAME PROJECT TYPE WARD PROJECT VALUE (R) NO OF PLANNED IMPLEMENTATION SITES DATE Pomeroy Low Cost Project Project Linked 2 R19 492 000 500 2007/08 Bathembu Rural Housing Rural 10,12,13 R19 492 000 500 2007/08 Emvundlweni Rural Housing Rural 8,9 R19 492 000 500 2007/08 Ezimbomvini Rural Housing Rural 11 R19 492 000 500 2007/08 Ethembeni Rural Housing Rural 9 R19 492 000 500 2009/10 Ngome Rural Housing Rural 9 R19 492 000 500 2009/10 Kwadolo Rural Housing Rural R19 492 000 500 2010/11 Mbono Rural Housing Rural 6 R19 492 000 500 2010/11 Nxamalala Rural Housing Rural 9 R19 492 000 500 2011/12 Mhlangane Rural Housing Rural 14 R19 492 000 500 2011/12
Refer to Annexure 1 for information on each site.
PS. This programme is to serve as the basis to inform the priorities of the District Municipality and to ensure alignment between the District’s Infrastructure Plan in terms of MIG funding and the local municipality’s housing plan.
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7. INTEGRATION WITH OTHER SECTORS:
It is essential that housing delivery is aligned to the delivery/planned delivery of services and facilities. It is therefore important that the housing plan is in line with the other sector plans of the District and Local municipality. The IDP is the core planning document of the municipality which enables service providers to plan and budget for the delivery of services and facilities in an integrated manner. The Housing Plan has been aligned to the various plans and programmes of the municipal area. The housing projects proposed in this plan have taken cognisance of the Msinga IDP, the Spatial Development Framework Sector Plan, Msinga Electricity Service Development Plan, Msinga Agricultural Plan and the Umzinyathi Water Service Development Plan. The identification of sites for housing development has therefore been aligned with the planned/proposed developments in the municipal area (as contained in the municipality’s IDP and sector plans). In relation to the IDP, the sites which have been identified either already have access to services or there are plans in place to ensure that services are provided.
Annexure 1 provides a detailed analysis of each site in terms of existing and proposed infrastructure/services. This therefore ensures that housing development will be aligned with the provision of social, economic and infrastructural services.
In regard to the housing proposals in the rural areas of the municipality, the delivery of rural residential opportunities is to be targeted at the identified service satellites.
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8. SPATIAL DEVELOPMENT FRAMEWORK (SEE MAP 5):
8.1 SPATIAL DEVELOPMENT FRAMEWORK SECTOR PLAN:
The Spatial Development Framework (SDF) is a key sector plan which forms part of the municipality’s IDP. A spatial development framework (SDF) is a plan that outlines developmental principles, policies and goals that are applicable to a municipal area in relation to physical space. It therefore provides a broad indication of where different types of development should take place – it provides spatial guidance for development. The Msinga SDF was prepared in 2002 and was reviewed in 2005 (See Map 5).
The Spatial Development Framework Sector Plan has as part of the residential settlement component identified low key commercial mixed uses along the access routes and outlying areas. It is located in a haphazard manner but are predominantly clustered around the major access routes, with the higher order services and commercial facilities concentrated around the core of the major settlements.
A hierarchy of nodes has been proposed. Tugela Ferry has been identified as a primary node (it is the commercial hub of the municipality and most of the provincial departments are situated here). Keates Drift and Pomeroy are considered to be secondary nodes. Mashunka/Nhlalakahle, Mkhuphula/Dolo, Cwaka, Mazabeko, Rorkes Drift and Msinga Top classified as tertiary nodes. As the foci for development is in the rural component of the municipal area, it is at these nodes that land should be identified for “Possible Future Housing” purposes.
In addition, the SDF has recognized the importance for human settlements around Tugela Ferry to be clearly defined and developed with further densification so as to create the necessary thresholds for the development of services and reduction in per capita-expenditure on service delivery.
Furthermore the municipality has initiated a process to establish a Land Use Management System (LUMS) for its area of jurisdiction. The aim of LUMS is to manage land use and regulate land development. Its intention is to promote coordinated, harmonious and environmentally sustainable development. A LUMS was compiled for the nodal areas identified in the SDF. The LUMS identified different land use categories which included areas for settlement. It would therefore be ideal for future housing projects to be implemented in the identified settlement areas. However, it should be noted that in terms of the rural housing guidelines compiled by the KwaZulu Natal Department of Housing, housing projects in rural areas can take the form of in-situ upgrades. This could therefore result in upgrades taking place in areas outside of the demarcated settlement areas.
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9. PERFORMANCE INDICATORS:
The Msinga Municipality established a Performance Management System (PMS) (in accordance with Chapter 6 of the Municipal Systems Act. No. 32 of 2000) as part of the IDP Review process. The PMS only focussed on individual performance management and was not linked to the organizational performance. (A consultant was however appointed to draft an organizational PMS and work on it is continuing.) The following performance indicators should be taken into consideration when the system is drafted:
PRIORITY STRATEGIES PERFORMANCE ASSUMPTIONS PROGRAMMES INDICATOR To accelerate 1.In-situ Number of in-situ Availability of development of upgrades. projects initiated. funding from houses in rural DoH. areas. Depends on land 2.Implement Number of availability. Greenfield Greenfield projects. Projects initiated. To facilitate 1. Source funding Appointment of Availability of Capacity Building for programme. Housing Officer. funding from DoH. Purchasing of equipment.
Establishment of Housing Demand Database.
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10. INSTITUTIONAL ARRANGEMENTS:
10.1 The Msinga Municipality does not have a dedicated housing department. The housing functions falls under the auspices of the Development Planning Department and the responsible official is the Director: Development Planning. He is assisted by one official in this regard i.e. the Development Facilitator.
10.2 The municipality has a Portfolio Committee which deals with housing issues and has also established a Housing Forum which consists of officials form the Department of Housing – Northern Regional Office and municipal officials.
10.3 The municipality indicated that the existing institutional arrangements are not working satisfactorily and has stated that there is a need for additional in-house capacity as well as resources in order to effectively administer the housing function. It is therefore recommended that funding be provided for the appointment of a housing officer and purchasing of equipment (computer, furniture). It should be noted that the municipality has initiated discussions with the Capacity Building component of the Department of Housing to assist it in this regard.
10.4 The current organogram of the component assigned with the housing function in the municipality is depicted below:
Director Development Planning
Manager: LED & Manager: Special Tourism Project & Liaison
Development Facilitator
Admin Clerk
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10.5 It is suggested that the current organogram be revised to make provision for the appointment of a Housing Officer:
Director Development Planning
Manager: LED & Manager: Special Tourism Project & Liaison
Development Facilitator Housing Officer
Admin Clerk
10.6 In order to transfer skills, the municipal official has been closely involved in the compilation of the plan (through attendance of all Project Steering Committee meetings, a public workshop, a project technical meeting and numerous telephonic discussions). It is suggested that the current official (until such time that the Housing Officer is appointed) attend the training programmes and information sessions offered by the Capacity Building and Policy components of the Department of Housing, in order to continue to enhance the official’s capacity to perform the housing function.
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11. CONCLUSION:
Housing has been identified as a priority issue in the Msinga IDP. The municipality has also established a Housing Forum which assists in facilitating the delivery of houses. There are housing projects which are currently being undertaken and additional projects have been planned to deal with the backlog in the rural areas.
As has been detailed in this plan, the remaining housing challenge is as follows:
the municipality increase its in-house capacity to deal with the housing function;
to initiate additional low cost housing projects to cater for the remaining households which are considered to form part of the housing backlog in the municipality
In addition, it is recommended that:
the municipality continue to assist the Department of Land Affairs in regard to the land reform process; and
the municipality review the Municipal Housing Plan on an annual basis (in conjunction with the annual IDP review). It should in future reviews make provision housing for vulnerable groups and medium density housing.
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REFERENCES
Department of Housing. March 2000. National Housing Code. Pretoria.
Department of Housing. August 2004. Comprehensive Plan for the Development of Sustainable Human Settlements. Pretoria.
Department of Public Works.2004. Guidelines for the Implementation of Labour-Intensive Infrastructure Projects under the Expanded Public Works Programme. Pretoria. http://www.statssa.gov.za/census2001/atlas_ward/index.html -20 February 2007.
JGP. 2003. Umzinyathi District Municipality WSDP. Pietermaritzburg.
Msinga Municipality. 2003. Msinga IDP: 2003/2004 Review. Tugela Ferry.
Msinga Municipality. 2005. Msinga IDP: 2005/06 Review. Tugela Ferry.
Msinga Municipality. 2006. Msinga IDP: 2006/07 Review. Tugela Ferry.
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