Government geared to implement Zim-Asset

The recent launch of the National Housing Delivery Programme by Cde Ignatius Chombo, the Minister of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing is a reflection of Government's sincerity in implementing the economic blue print, the Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio-Economic Transformation (ZimAsset).

The housing scheme is set to avail 105 000 units in Harare, a dramatic leap that will, all things being equal, benefit both civil servants and the generality of Harare residents. According to ZimAsset, government is to avail 313 368 housing units across the country by 2018. With the available vast tracts of land across the country, the housing crisis in the country is quite surmountable. Political willpower and commitment from the private sector are key ingredients to the success of this national vision.

The detractors of Zanu PF government have already dismissed this noble plan of action as nothing but one of those political rhetorics. These prophets of doom are excitedly waiting for a time when they will say ‘we told you that it was just a throw away rhetoric.'

It is the duty of Cde Chombo and his ministry to prove these critics wrong. It is a fact that government, which is pressed by other competing national issues, has no capacity to fulfil this objective by itself. It cannot go it alone, thus the private sector, especially the financial institutions should join hands with government for this national dream to come true.

However, irregularities that characterised previous projects of this nature can blight this noble idea. Government must put in place some mechanisms that will ensure that the intended beneficiaries profit. Corruption in the allocation of the houses and the pricing regime of same can blot the programme.

If these vices are not checked, houses will be indeed built but the housing waiting list will not be reduced even by an inch. Civil servants will remain eternal lodgers. Therefore, there is a great need to make sure that the prices of the houses are contained within the reach of the generality of the civil servants.

Government is currently selling some two-bed roomed flats in Tafara and Ardbene for cash prices of $30 390 and $50 000 respectively. For the few civil servants who will be lucky to get the few units on offer, they will have to fork out a deposit of $3 500 and thereafter pay monthly instalments for the next 25 years.

In Ardberne, the monthly rent-to-buy instalment is $272 while $187 will be required for Tafara flats. A flat in Ardberne will end up with a total value of over $85 000 while those in Tafara will be over $59 000.

Eighty-five thousand dollars which is equivalent to R850 000 can buy a mansion in one of the leafy suburbs of South Africa. Thus, it becomes a bit unfair for a civil servant to buy a flat in Mbare at such a steep price that can buy a mansion.

In the first place, raising $3 500 deposit is a colossal task for a civil servant. They will have to borrow from banks or loan sharks to raise it and this will keep them captive for some years.

Most civil servants have take-homes that are less than $400. They have other financial obligations to meet using the $400. They need to pay medical bills, school fees for their children, food and telephone bills among others, which will leave them with less than $200 to spare. Only God knows where they will get the $272 for monthly instalment.

Government should be exemplary to all other property developers by setting affordable prices for its properties. The current pricing regime will surely set a bad precedence for other property developers and government will not be able to reign in these property developers when they drain off home seekers.

In view of this, these flats are out of reach for most of the civil servants who constitute the majority of lodgers in urban areas. What this means is that the flats will end up in the hands of the haves, who are mostly senior civil servants. In most cases, these senior government officials have many other properties that they acquired through government facilities.

 To make matters worse, these senior government officials are occupying government houses for a song and they rent out their properties at inflated rentals. A visit at any of the government flats and houses will testify to this. These government houses should be rented out to junior civil servants while they save money to buy their own houses. In fact, there should be a minimum period of occupancy.

Government should reconsider its pricing system in the new housing scheme for low-income citizens to realise the benefits of ZimAsset. The current price will only benefit the already empowered citizens and we then risk the danger of expending national resources on people who are richer than the government itself.
 
Government will obviously work in partnership with some banks to develop these residential stands. The banks exist for the sole purpose of making profit. Government has to be alert, lest these banks inflate the cost of the houses. This will push the houses further out of reach for the poor civil servant and provides an opportunity for the well-heeled residents to stockpile properties.

At the end, ZimAsset will be implemented but the housing backlog will remain as it is. The civil servants will remain poor while the haves continue to amass properties even for their unborn grandchildren. If civil servants have a roof above their heads, it will save government from the pressure of frequently increasing their salaries. It is a form of non-monetary incentive that government should seriously consider.