The Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality has started construction of 153 houses in Joe Slovo and KwaNobuhle, with the two developments valued at more than R33.3 million.
The construction started on 1 October 2026 and is scheduled for completion on 26 February 2027.
The projects comprise 83 houses in Joe Slovo and 70 houses in KwaNobuhle Area 11.
The developments come as the metro, located in the Eastern Cape, grapples with a housing backlog of about 100 000 units. About 150 informal settlements accommodate thousands of residents who live without secure tenure, dignified shelter or access to basic services.
The municipality said the projects are part of efforts to progressively realise the constitutional right of access to adequate housing, while prioritising residents in the greatest need.
Nelson Mandela Bay Executive Mayor Babalwa Lobishe said the municipality understands the plight of residents and the difficult conditions in which many people continue to live.
“This number might sound like a small number, but it means a lot to an elderly woman who stays in a shack with her grandchildren, who by the Easter season will spend time in a formal house for the first time.
“As we build houses, we have to understand the disparities. As we deliver houses, we focus on the elderly, households headed by children, people with disabilities, the unemployed and those who are earning between R0 and R3,500, who are eligible for subsidised housing in terms of the Human Settlements policy,” Lobishe said.
The municipality said the city had applied to the Eastern Cape Department of Human Settlements for funding to construct 500 houses in Joe Slovo and a further 300 in KwaNobuhle Area 11.
However, funding was approved for 83 houses in Joe Slovo and 70 in KwaNobuhle, amounting to 153 of the 800 houses requested.
For the 2026/27 financial year, the Joe Slovo project has a budget of R18 066 693, while R15 236 970 has been allocated to the KwaNobuhle Area 11 development.
“Together they represent an average public investment of approximately R217 671 per home,” the municipality stated.
The municipality noted that housing delivery is a shared responsibility between national, provincial and local government, with the metro also responsible for providing bulk infrastructure and other municipal services.
Lobishe said the municipality is working with provincial and national government to increase funding allocations for housing and accelerate delivery.
“We have built our internal capacity, and we are now capable of delivering much bigger developments so that we can make a difference in the 100 000 housing backlog that we have,” she said.
The projects are also expected to provide economic opportunities, with seven small, medium, and micro Enterprise (SMME) contractors appointed across the two sites, including three in Joe Slovo and four in KwaNobuhle Area 11.
The municipality said the developments will contribute to enterprise development, skills transfer and income generation within the metro.
It also reaffirmed its commitment to prioritise vulnerable residents in beneficiary allocations, while accelerating the upgrading of informal settlements and advocating for increased funding to address the housing backlog.
“Beneficiary allocation will remain transparent and aligned with national housing policy, with the most vulnerable residents kept firmly at the front of the queue,” the municipality said. – SAnews.gov.za
