Harambee Valley will be a 'smart city'

A private development that aims to build more than 60 000 low-cost houses on the north-western outskirts of Windhoek is one step closer to becoming a reality.

In August, the Windhoek city council conditionally approved the Monte Christo development, which will form a part of the Harambee Valley project, which has been hailed by the council as a welcome private initiative that could help ease the city's housing problems.

“The issue of a shortage and unaffordable housing and unavailable serviced land comes a long time now, and has gained momentum at various levels.

The problem is particularly acute among low- and middle-income earners,” the council agenda states.

The Monte Christo development will consist of around 35 000 houses for low- and middle-income earners.

According to the agenda, the Harambee Valley project overall will provide more than 60 000 dwelling units, of which 33 000 (55%) units will be for low-income earners, and 24 000 (40%) for middle-income earners. The remaining 5% of the area will be used for high-cost housing.

Christopher van de Vijver, a director of Nambel Investments, the owner of portions 806 to 814 of the farm Monte Christo, told Namibian Sun that the first phase of the project would consist of 7 000 housing units and various plots for industrial, business and commercial use.

He said the cost of this phase, which would include bulk infrastructure and internal infrastructure, was estimated at N$4.8 billion.

Harambee Valley will “boast a complete city centre with various recreational attractions and other places of interest and will cater for all the needs of the community including the creation of employment, ensuring the availability of health, educational and transport services to the community and will have its own identity,” he said.

He added that the prime goal of the project for Nambel Investments was to provide a “smart city” that that catered affordably to the needs of lower-income groups.

It could help alleviate the critical housing shortage for these groups by doing a large-scale, cost-effective development, driven by private initiative and supported by government.



All hands on deck

City officials note in the council agenda that the proposal made by Nambel Investments, in addition to owners of nearby portions of land comprising Harambee Valley, was aligned with the municipality's long-term planning.

Van de Vijver said although several more steps were needed before the construction phase could begin, the council approval was a step in the right direction.

He said the construction phase, which would include the provision of services such as water and electricity for the entire project, could only begin after numerous other applications had been approved by NamPower, NamWater, the Roads Authority and the City of Windhoek.

Depending on the speed of these approvals and funding negotiations, it was hoped that construction could begin within the next 14 to 18 months, he added.



Crucial housing investment







It is expected that by the year 2030 Windhoek will have a population of 645 355, Van de Vijver said.



As a result, at least 80 000 houses must be built in the next 13 years to meet the demand and the current backlog.

He said private-sector initiatives were crucial to help the municipality meet the demand, as the City did not have the resources to fund the servicing of plots at the required scale.

In his view, the greatest housing need currently is in the low- to middle-income sectors.

Due to decades of neglect of the poor and very poor, “the real source of market demand is not the wealthy few, but the emerging middle-income consumers and the thousands of aspiring poor who are joining the market economy for the first time.”

One of the unique aspects of the Harambee Valley project was that it would not focus solely on providing housing to a specific target market, “but will incorporate the development of a whole new city,” Van de Vijver added.

JANA-MARI SMITH