Whk informal settlements don’t have capacity

Windhoek mayor Fransina Kahungu said unplanned informal settlements in Windhoek will be declared reception areas that will be decongested in order to reduce the spread of Covid-19.

Kahunga pointed out that the decision was taken at a special council meeting on Monday after a directive was issued by minister of urban and rural development, Erastus Uutoni, for the city to decongest densely populated informal settlements as one of the methods to fight Covid-19.

“The urgent decongestion plan includes the number of people or dwellings who have been identified that are in need to being moved or relocated. We will also consider the nature of decongestion or relocation that has been identified or recommended or has been decided to be undertaken,” said Kahungu.

Basic services

She added that the availability of land will also determine the relocation process, which will include the surveying of the land, basic services like water and electricity.

“With an increasing number of people living in informal settlements, concerted efforts are needed to transform the current informal settlements into sustainable human settlements where households will be guaranteed a decent standard of living. The increasing cases of Covid-19 and the persisting Hepatitis E pandemics amongst others are making the attainment of such a vision challenging,” the mayor said.

She added that the Ministry of Urban and Rural Development indicated that it does not have money budgeted for the said exercise. The City of Windhoek will therefore have to look into its budget. She however did not disclose how much will be spent on the exercise, which areas will be targeted, nor when the exercise will commence. - Nampa