A Place We Want to Call Our Own: A Study on Land Tenure Policy and Securing Housing Rights in Namibia

A Place We Want to Call Our Own: A Study on Land Tenure Policy and Securing Housing Rights in Namibia

At independence, apartheid policy was abolished and the new Constitution introduced the right of all Namibians to reside and settle in any part of the country. This provoked a dramatic increase of informal settlement in Windhoek, mostly around Katutura. Many living in overcrowded conditions in Katutura moved onto vacant land nearby and many migrants from impoverished rural areas joined them. These newly settled urban residents lived in very unhygienic conditions, without easily accessible water and sewerage facilities. In the early days of informal settlement in Windhoek, the Windhoek City Council (WCC) seemed powerless to stem the tide. Currently, the growing poorer city population profile points at a lower capacity of the city to generate income from rates and taxes annually. The WCC has attempted in recent years to match affordability levels (ability to pay) with an appropriate basic service for the city’s poor population.

Willem Odendaal

http://www.lac.org.na/projects/lead/Pdf/aplacewewanttocallourown.pdf

Legal Assistance Centre

2005

© Land, Environment and Development Project, Legal Assistance Centre, 2005

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