23 Feb 2017

In 2009, government decided through Presidential Directive Cab 31/2009 that the Installment Purchase Scheme (IPS) should be established, the implementation of which was to be driven by the Botswana Housing Corporation (BHC).

Minister of Infrastructure and Housing Development, Mr Nonofo Molefhi says told Parliament Wednesday that the scheme targeted individuals earning between P3 000 and P7 000 per month.

He said the IPS initially set out to develop 1 000 houses per annum for four consecutive years using finance from the national budget.

However, he said due to budgetary constraints, BHC was directed to borrow P400 million from the Public Debt Service Fund (PDSF) to develop the first 750 units.

“Of these, 636 units are to be developed in Tsholofelo East Extension in Gaborone on two sites, while 156 units were started in April 2016 and are due for completion in December and 216 units were awarded to three contractors in September 2016,” he said.

Mr Molefhi noted that the other 264 units were at the design stage and should be awarded by the end of this financial year.

Again, he said an additional 114 units, which would bring the total to 750, were being planned at a site in block 7, also with a view to commencing on site before the end of the financial year.

He added that of the 750 units to be completed, 250 would be reserved for the youth under the youth housing programme.

The minister said the aim of the Presidential Directive Cab 31/2009 was for IPS to be developed and made available to the beneficiaries wherever they reside in Botswana.

“However, studies would be undertaken to establish uptake potential before a development could commence. It is worth noting that Francistown and other urban centres are most suitable for high rise development and IPS units will be developed once requisite land is secured and effective demand is established,” he said.

Thus, he said it was envisaged that the first IPS units in Francistown would be developed in the 2019/20 financial year.

Meanwhile, the minister said the Tenant Purchase Scheme (TPS) was first introduced in 1986 and was intended to assist Batswana who were occupying BHC houses through a lease to have an opportunity to purchase same. The scheme, he said was therefore open to all citizen tenants who wished to purchase BHC houses in installments over a maximum period of 25 years, but was suspended in 2004 due to, among other reasons, the high default rate.

Notwithstanding the challenges experienced earlier, Mr Molefhi said the lessons learnt from TPS suspension had made a case for its re-introduction.

To this end, he said the revamped TPS had been introduced to afford sitting tenants of BHC who could not afford to get loans from the banks to buy houses they occupied on installment basis.

He said so far, 88 applicants had been received, the majority of which were for houses in Gaborone, while applications were being processed with a view to the first sales being concluded during the fourth quarter.

Further, he said the TPS was for all BHC tenants who wished to buy housing units they occupied, including the low cost houses.

In addition to TPS, Mr Molefhi said those on the low income category not occupying any BHC houses would be served through the installment purchase scheme.

Francistown South MP, Mr Wynter Mmolotsi had wanted an update on the IPS and when the programme was likely to start in Francistown.

Mr Mmolotsi also wanted to know if the minister would consider introducing the TPS, especially for low cost houses. BOPA