14 May 2013

Beneficiaries of the Botswana Housing Corporation (BHC) Turnkey SHHA loan have a role to provide water for the building of their houses, BHC’s project manager, Mr Chingeta Chingeta has said.

Speaking during an orientation workshop for the Mahalapye Sub District  beneficiaries, Mr Chingeta said beneficiaries should ensure that their plots have access to water or arrange for water to be sourced from someplace near the plot.

He said water was an integral part of construction therefore it should be availed to make work easier. 

Beneficiaries will have to provide storage for building materials at the sites and also take responsibility of the structure.

He pointed out that BHC will soon start building houses for 68 beneficiaries in the area, and that the construction of each will take three months.

He further noted that in a bid to create employment for Batswana, they have engaged some small contractors who may not have equipment for the job.

The contractors will be able to buy material from local suppliers who will be paid upon delivery, he said. 

The project manager also assured the beneficiaries that BHC would supervise  construction. 

“Shoddy jobs will not be tolerated, and only BHC inspectors will be used as payment will only be made if we are satisfied with the results,” he assured the benficiaries.

For his part, chairperson of the local SHHA committee, Mr Molefhi Mphoyakgosi pleaded with beneficiaries not to disappear after getting their house keys. 

“There is a tendency for people to disappear without paying back loans after they have been assisted,” said Mr Mphoyakgosi, who is also the area councillor (Shoshong ward).

He said it was only proper that beneficiaries have a good working relationship with the SHHA office by paying back the loan so that other Batswana can benefit as well. He also requested beneficiaries to provide current telephone numbers, further advising them to  inform the office if they have any problems.

The beneficiaries will be loaned P60 000 and pay back P250 per month for 20 years. They were told that they could top up the installment so that they finish paying the loan faster if they are able to do so, especially that it is a revolving loan, and by paying it off earlier, other Batswana would benefit. ENDS