Urban and Rural Development Minister, Erastus Uutoni officially handed over 15 houses at Bukalo village in the Zambezi Region, on Saturday.

The construction of the houses was funded by the Trust Fund for Regional Development and Equity Provisions.

In a speech availed to Nampa, Uutoni said the provision of cheap, decent housing and shelter continues to be a national development priority, which requires collective action from the government at all levels, the community, and other stakeholders such as the private sector in the form of the construction industry and financial institutions.

“On its part, the Ministry of Urban and Rural Development (MURD), continues to create an enabling environment and rally national efforts towards scaling up the provision of affordable serviced land and housing through a partnership between the Government, the private sector and community-led organisations such as the Shack Dwellers Federation of Namibia (SDFN),” he said.

Uutoni further stated that the MURD will continue to support housing programmes led by local authorities, such as the Build Together Programme, as well as community groups, such as the SDFN, that serve ultra-low-income people.

Meanwhile, Uutoni recently handed over 33 dwellings built by the National Housing Enterprise at Tsandi in the Omusati Region.

Source: The Namibian Press Agency