Question NW2554 to the Minister of Human Settlements
22 October 2018 - NW2554
Malatsi, Mr MS to ask the Minister of Human Settlements
1.Whether she will furnish Mr M S Malatsi with details of all the beneficiaries on the National Housing Needs Register (NHNR) in the Northern Cape to identify the proper beneficiaries for the purposes of monitoring and accountability; if so, whilst respecting privacy rights, a) what are (i) the names, (ii) ID numbers and (iii) dates on which each person was added to the needs register, (b) what is the projected waiting-period for the persons currently on the waiting list and (c) what is the average length of time a beneficiary spent on the NHNR before receiving housing for those no longer on the list; 2. whether the complete list of beneficiary details for persons registered with the NHNR has been provided to all councillors in the relevant municipalities; if not (a) why not and (b) on what date will the list be provided to the municipalities; if so, on what date was the list provided to each relevant municipality; 3. whether the list are regularly updated as new names are added; if not what is the position in this regards; if so, what are the relevant details?
Reply:
1. (a) The Northern Cape has 78,271 households that have registered their need for adequate shelter on the National Housing Needs Register (NHNR) system.
(i) The names of the main member of the households that have registered their need for adequate shelter on the National Housing Needs Register (NHNR) system will be disclosed based on the required compliance with the provision of the Promotion of Access to Information Act.
(ii) The Identity Number (ID) of the main member of the household that has registered their need for adequate shelter on the National Housing Needs Register (NHNR), in compliance with the POPI Act, has been excluded from the list.
(iii) The date that the main member of the households has registered his / her household’s need for adequate shelter on the National Housing Needs Register (NHNR) system.
(b) The projected waiting-period depends on budget allocation and project planning that occurs at a Provincial and Municipal level. The current average waiting-period calculated based on the households that have registered their need for adequate shelter on the National Housing Needs Register (NHNR) is on average about 14 years. These households have not been assisted to date.
(c) The average waiting-period of households that have registered their need for adequate shelter on the National Housing Needs Register (NHNR) and met the qualifying criteria is 3 years. The households are advised to complete subsidy application forms if a project has been identified in the area where they are residing. Such a project must form part of the Provincial Business Plan, after approval by the MEC and funding must be assigned based on the Human Settlements Development Grant.
2. (a) The National Housing Needs Register (NHNR) system is a web base application that is accessible on any web enabled device: cell phone, tablet, laptop and PC to registered users of the system. Users of the National Housing Needs Register (NHNR) at provincial and municipal levels are able to provide on request, to elected representatives a report that contains information about households that have registered their need for adequate shelter on the National Housing Needs Register (NHNR) for their specific area of responsibility. To protect the personal information of households the National Department is in the process to develop a report that could be provided to elected representatives on request. The report will as a minimum contain the following: Municipality, Area, Surname and First Name of the head of the household, physical address and ward number. It must also be noted that the Department has encouraged Provinces and Municipalities to publish allocation lists in order to ensure that allegations or perceptions of corruption and manipulation are confronted and action taken where it happens.
(b) The National Department has also embarked on a process to develop a specific National Housing Needs Register (NHNR) application for elected representatives. This will provide a live feed of household information as it occurs, relevant to their municipality. As a minimum the following information will be available: Municipality, Area, Surname and First Name of the head of the household, physical address and ward number.
3. Yes, the NHNR is updated regularly
NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
QUESTION FOR WRITTEN REPLY
QUESTION NUMBER: PQ 2554 [NW2843E]
DATE OF PUBLICATION: 31 AUGUST 2018
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Recommended/not recommended
N LETSHOLONYANE
DEPUTY DIRECTOR-GENERAL: CORPORATE SERVICES
DATE:
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Recommended/not recommended
N CHAINEE
DEPUTY DIRECTOR-GENERAL: STRATEGY AND PLANNING
DATE:
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Recommended/not recommended
M TSHANGANA
DIRECTOR-GENERAL
DATE:
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Approved/Not approved
N. MFEKETO, MP
MINISTER FOR HUMAN SETTLEMENTS
DATE: