President Cyril Ramaphosa says the R33 billion Mooikloof Mega Residential City project provides an opportunity to rebuild the economy in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ramaphosa officially launched the housing project in Pretoria earlier today. The project is expected to create more than 40 000 jobs.
A total of 50-thousand housing units will be built to accommodate about 250 000 people after the project is completed.
People earning between R3 000 and R22 000 per month can apply for a loan through government’s Finance Linked Individual Subsidy programme. Government will subsidise applicants in the project which Ramaphosa says seeks to address the country’s housing backlog.
“The launch of this project is in many ways a ray of sunshine in an otherwise gloomy situation or climate. It is a demonstration of our resilience as a country and of the strength of public-private partnerships. What we are seeing is impressive and I look forward to seeing the building and all the houses at this wonderful mega city that is going to rise from the ground in this place.”
The video below is of the launch of the project:
Speaking during the launch, Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Patricia de Lille said government’s aim was to promote integration among communities by helping those who have no access to housing to obtain home loans from banks.
She says the Mooikloof Mega Residential City project will address apartheid spatial planning and bring about social justice.
De Lille says the initiative is in line with government’s Batho Pele principle.