IT felt like an early Christmas gift for an elderly pensioner who finally moved into her new RDP home, along with 24 other housing beneficiaries, in Mdantsane, Buffalo City Metro midlands, on Monday, 25th November.
After a long wait for her new RDP house, 99-year-old grandmother Nokavala Nkwadla, along with 24 other RDP house beneficiaries, received keys to their new homes from Buffalo City Metro’s executive mayor, Princess Faku.
Faku officially handed over the new houses to the rightful beneficiaries. The greater Mdantsane urban housing development project comprised the construction of 1,500 low-cost housing units as part of Buffalo City Metro’s (BCM) five-year housing integrated development plan, which is expected to continue until the 2026/27 financial year.
The housing project is expected to benefit qualifying housing beneficiaries in five different municipal wards in Mdantsane.
Upon receiving the keys to her new house from Faku, the elderly Nkwadla from Tambo Park informal settlement in Mdantsane could not hide her excitement after years of hardship living in an old, dilapidated shack at the informal settlement.
“I am very grateful to our mayor, Faku. For many years, I’ve been struggling, living under poor conditions in an old, dilapidated shack; when it rained, it brought misery to my family. Occupying this new house feels like getting an early Christmas gift for my grandchildren,” said Nkwadla.
Speaking at the handover ceremony, Faku urged all beneficiaries to refrain from selling their RDP houses, adding that the Metro will continue to provide better living conditions for Buffalo City’s underprivileged communities. “As we continue to build these houses, our ultimate goal as the Metro is to help improve the living conditions of our people,” added Faku.
A few years ago, Buffalo City Metro started the Mdantsane Urban Renewal Project (MURP), which has resulted in the construction of low-cost housing structures, community halls, and the multi-million-rand Unit P housing development project.
Through BCM’s housing integrated development plan, new RDP houses have been built in various townships, including Duncan Village, Nompumelelo, Orange Grove, Ilitha, Dimbaza, and Phakamisa.
