12 Feb 2025

There is a significant housing shortage for public officers in Selebi-Phikwe, where 2 553 individuals are currently employed, but only 1 248 houses are available for accommodation.

Among the available houses, 26 are uninhabitable due to major maintenance issues, the Minister of Water and Human Settlement Mr Onneetse Ramogapi has said.
He noted that, due to budgetary constraints, there were no immediate plans to repair these houses.

However, he said the ministry was actively seeking partnerships with the private sector to address pressing housing challenges faced by public officers.

Presently, 1 331 public officers were occupying official residences, while 1 080 had opted for private market rentals, and 142 have their own homes. Notably, 212 of these officers, primarily teachers, were sharing institutional housing.

Mr Ramogapi said the current waiting list for housing accommodations consisted of 439 applicants. The oldest applications on the general waiting list date back to 2017, while those on the priority list were submitted in 2020, he said.

Additionally, applications for essential services housing were made in 2023, resulting in a general waiting period of approximately seven years.

MP for Selebi Phikwe West, Mr Reuben Kaiser, had inquired about the balance between public officers housed in official accommodations, those sharing and those renting privately. ENDS