Housing consumer empowerment programme for North West Province

The North West Department of Human Settlements is in a process if intensifying housing consumer education as part of community empowerment programme across the province. The programme that has been carried out for several year, seeks to address the needs of communities as beneficiaries of human settlements development.

According to the Director for Stakeholder Engagement and Capacity Development, Ben Bole, the programme is intended to highlight the importance of housing maintenance to the affected beneficiaries. The programme will further impart more information on different housing products such as Financed Linked Individual Subsidy Programme (FLISPs), Tittle deed and Military veterans programme that will be presented before the broader communities during the envisaged interaction sessions.

“The programme will be rolled out in the current financial year going forward as one of the priorities of the department and it will kick start during this month until all envisaged areas are covered across the province. We are targeting areas where there are newly completed housing projects, those that are about to start and the current running project. The roll-out programme is linked to the departmental approved business plan,” said Bole.

Through consumer education programme the department is targeting disadvantaged communities, mostly women, child headed households, people with disability, youth and other vulnerable groups. Beneficiaries in most rural areas have benefited immensely through the programme and the department intends to spread the information sharing sessions through all means of communication to ensure that those legible are informed.   Currently the department has planned to build over four thousand houses in this financial year in order to curb the housing backlog that the department has been experiencing.

Source: Government of South Africa