Minister of Housing Lindiwe Sisulu launched a R400-million housing project at Olievenhoutbosch, south-west of Pretoria, on Monday.
”This project will provide decent homes for many low-income people and the poor. We will build on this partnership until all informal settlements are eradicated by 2014,” Sisulu said in a media statement.
The project, which is expected to be complete by March 2008, combines the efforts of the national and provincial housing departments, the Tshwane municipality and Absa bank.
Olievenhoutbosch has recently experienced xenophobic clashes between South Africans and Mozambicans and Zimbabweans over housing and service delivery.
Two Zimbabweans died in January when renewed violence erupted in the area.
The development, to be officially known as Olievenhoutbosch Extension 36, will consist of 5 480 units, comprising 1 168 bonded, 3 049 subsidised and 1 263 rental units.
It is to be built on more than 180ha of land.
”In his recent budget speech, Finance Minister Trevor Manuel exempted houses with a value of less than R500 000 from transfer duties. This is good news for any aspirant homeowners who now have a much better chance of owning a home,” Absa chief executive Steve Booysen said in a statement.
Booysen said Olievenhoutbosch is the first in a series of projects Absa will be involved in with the government and other role players to help address the housing demands of the country. — Sapa