Conference on protecting housing consumers held

Windhoek – Kavango Block Brick, a Namibian construction company in partnership with the Development Bank of Namibia, the Polytechnic of Namibia and the Namibia Standards Institute this week held a conference on the basic minimum requirements for housing in order to protect housing consumers.

At the event, the National Home Builders Registration Council (NHBRC) a South African company shared key experiences with the Namibian construction industry on the regulatory function of the NHBRC in the Home Building Industry in South Africa, specifically offering protection for the housing consumer and ensuring quality standards.

The NHBRC is an organ of the South African government established to protect the interests of housing consumers and to regulate the homebuilding industry in terms of the Housing Consumer Protection Measures Act, 1998 (Act No. 95 of 1998 in South Africa).

Speaking at the event was the NHBRC Chief Executive Officer Sipho Mashinini who said the objects of his council are among others to regulate the homebuilding industry and to provide protection to housing consumers in respect of the failure of home builders to comply with their obligation in terms of Section 3 of the Housing Consumers Protection Measures Act.

The conference was an initiative of the Kavango Block Brick with the focus to bring all stakeholders in the field of construction to the table to learn from experts in the field of regulating the home building industry to protect the housing consumer. Also speaking at the event was the Under Secretary of the Ministry of Works and Transport Andrew Mwazi, on behalf Works and Transport Minister Erkki Ngimtina. He said the conference has come at a better time as Namibia's government is looking for innovative ways to improve the livelihood of the country's people trough providing affordable housing.

The aim of the conference is to learn from South Africa on how the building industry is regulated and controlled in their country.

'I am certain, that if our building industry is coordinated and regulated properly our people in this country will have access to affordable local building materials, thus enabling them to construct their own houses,' Ngimtina said. Through establishing a similar regulatory body the building industry in Namibia will ensure not only affordable opportunities to construct their own houses but also sustainable quality housing the minister said.

The Southern Times
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North West volunteer builders to receive training

Pretoria - The 80 female volunteers who helped build 54 houses in the North West province as part of Women's Month, are to receive training that will equip them to start their own construction companies.

The North West Department of Human Settlements said it plans on hosting a training programme for the women who participated in the Women's Build Programme, which saw them help build houses for vulnerable families in Coligny, North West.

The women will be trained in financial literacy by FNB and will also get a week's training in Life Orientation by the National Youth Development Agency.

The women will also receive three months training from the National Home Builders Registration Council (NHBRC) during which time they will be taught technical skills and undergo practical training.

"On completion of the training, volunteers will be issued with NHBRC accreditation certificates which will then give them opportunities to create jobs for themselves or establish their own construction companies," the department said.

The training programme is an initiative of Human Settlements Minister Tokyo Sexwale and North West Human Settlements MEC Desbo Mohono. - BuaNews

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