CoW embarks on plan to formalise informal settlements

Patience Makwele

The City of Windhoek has embarked on a large-scale plan to formalise informal settlements, a move that could see more than 11 000 residential erven created for thousands of residents currently living without secure land tenure or access to fully serviced municipal infrastructure.

The initiative follows the submission of the City’s first five Environmental Clearance Certificate (ECC) applications to the Office of the Environmental Commissioner, marking the first regulatory hurdle in what municipal officials describe as one of Windhoek’s biggest informal settlement upgrading programmes.

The first phase is expected to unlock about 3,587 residential erven across five planning areas, including Havana, Okatunda, Okandundu and several surrounding farms.

Speaking during an interview with NBC, City of Windhoek Chief Executive Officer Moses Matyayi described the applications as a significant milestone in the City’s efforts to reduce the housing backlog while transforming informal settlements into planned neighbourhoods.