Apartheid in South Africa officially ended 30 years ago. Even though the country’s constitution confirms that all citizens have a right to adequate housing, cities are still physically divided on racial lines. Thousands of people still live in substandard housing. Such is the case in Capetown, where this post gets its start.
Although it’s hard to know from thousands of kilometres away, Ndifuna Ukwazi seems to be at the centre of efforts to reform land use in Cape Town. The organization started in 2011. It works to fight illegal evictions, and ensure security of tenure. It supports community activism. Nnifuna Ukwazi uses research, its own and from other sources, to guide its decisions and actions.
It is Ndifuna Ukwazi’s research arm that drew affordablehousingaction.org’s attention. The report Public Land For People calls on the provincial and national governments to use public land to build decent housing. The report centres on four parcels that are currently used as parking lots for government workers. The report proposes that the parcels be used for a mixture of market rent houses (969 units), social rent houses (969 units) and transitional housing for 732 people. You can read more about it at Ndifuna Ukwazi: Public Land For People Not For Parking
You may wonder what kind of effect does a report like this has. Public Land For People was published in May 2024. In June, 2024 the municipal government announced its decision to build market housing (300 units) and social housing (375 units) on a municipal site that is currently used for parking. The municipal site is just two kilometres from the parking lots owned by the provincial and national governments.
Public Land For People is about land owned by provincial and national governments, but a decision by any level of government could be taken as a sign that the report is having an impact.
As well, the local government decision demonstrates leadership and stands as an invitation (challenge?) to provincial and national governments to follow suit.
Bravo to Ndifuna Ukwazi and supporters who are working to make real the right to adequate housing. This story tells all of us that the road to housing rights is a long one (much longer than it needs to be) and that organizations like Ndifuna Ukwazi will help to get us there.
You can read about the announcement by the city of Cape Town in Southern Suburbs Tatler: City releases new site for inner-city social housing
