The current social housing delivery approach in Zambia favours most the middle and high-income earners while leaving out the lower income earners where majority Zambians belong, Civic Forum on Housing and Habitat (CFHH) Executive Director Grace Mtonga has said.
Ms. Mtonga told The Scoop that lack of housing had been a growing concern across the country despite it being crucial to the welfare, survival, and health of individuals.
She said that having access to quality affordable housing was fundamental to reduced poverty, improved equal opportunities, and guaranteed sustainable growth.
“The current social housing delivery approach in Zambia seems to favour most the middle and high-income earners leaving the lower income earners where majority Zambians belong. This is posing a challenge towards attaining the objective of UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) number 11 that aim, by 2030, to put housing at the centre of specific policies aimed at drastically reducing the quantity of people living in conditions below the minimum standards,” Ms. Mtonga said.
She observed that the urbanisation in Zambia had proceeded at an unprecedented rate, adding that Zambians should become more prepared in terms of attitude, policies, institutions or resource mobilization.
“The National Housing Policy must be based upon what the national economy and the people can afford. Otherwise, the policy cannot produce housing on a scale commensurate with demand and the poor will always be excluded. It is notable that the vast majority of houses in the compounds share common housing facilities such as bathrooms and lavatories. This has compelled some households to resort to bathing in open spaces, leading to outbreaks of waterbone diseases,” she said.
She insisted that the high level of non-decent accommodation in the communities was attributed to ill-enforcement of building laws that had allowed landlords to supply housing without lavatories with impunity.