Urban and Rural Development Minister, Hon. Erastus Uutoni, has commended the National Housing Enterprise (NHE) Board for reaching out to key stakeholders, particularly local authorities, to devise collective measures aimed at tackling the national housing backlog. The Minister also applauded the Board for implementing a turnaround strategy which has seen various milestones attained over the past 15 months at the housing entity. Hon. Uutoni made the remarks during the Board’s courtesy visit to the Minister in Windhoek on Friday, 16 August 2024.

Following their appointment in February 2023, the Board, under the leadership of Ms. Toska Sem, prioritised, as part of its short-term strategy, strengthening stakeholder relations with key players in the housing fraternity, acquisition of affordable funding for capital projects, and the clearing of audited financial statements.

The Minister was informed that the Board has since cleared the audited financial backlog dating back to 2017, introduced new housing designs to address affordability concerns, and that the Enterprise’s compliance with the Public Enterprises Governance Act, 2019 (Act. No.1 of 2019) requirements has improved from 40% as of April 2023 to 70% in April 2024.

The Board has also orchestrated a long-term strategy, enshrined in the 2024 – 2029 Integrated Strategic Business Plan (ISBP), which will result in the development of over 8000 housing units, while 856 houses will be built during the current financial year. Hon. Uutoni urged the Board to continue making positive strides to ensure that NHE efficiently and effectively delivers on its mandate. Ms Sem thanked the Minister for continued guidance and reiterated NHE’s commitment to housing provision in line with the Enterprise’s mandate.

The meeting was also attended by Urban and Rural Development Executive Director, Mr. Nghidinua Daniel, NHE CEO, Mr. Gisbertus Mukulu and senior officials from NHE and the line Ministry.