Windhoek to electrify 4 000 households in five years

The Windhoek City Council has authorised a plan to electrify 4 000 informal settlement dwellings, over the next five years, commencing this year.

This is according to a report on the City of Windhoek’s ordinary council meeting held last week.

According to the city, the new five-year electrification plan was drafted in consultation with the department of housing, property management and human settlement on which informal settlements are to be upgraded.

To reach the targets of the plan, the department of electricity requires N$15 million to N$20 million per annum.

The report said since 2017, the City of Windhoek has been working to electrify houses at informal settlements, completing 3 515 service connections to date at Otjomuise, Havana, Goreagab, One Nation, Okahandja Park, Ongulumbashe, Babilon and Kilimanjaro.

The electrification projects under the 2017 to 2022 plan were funded by the Ministry of Urban and Rural Development and NamPower, with a total capital investment of around N$45 million.

“The implementation of the electrification projects in the informal settlements will be completed with the assistance of different electrical contractors, who will be appointed through the competitive bidding process using the open national bidding method,” the report reads.

The proposed areas for electrification will only be taken into account for those designated erven located within the unincorporated regions of the Windhoek Rural, Tobias Hainyeko, Moses //Garoëb, Khomasdal, and Samora Machel constituencies. In June, The Namibian reported that the African Development Bank would fund the electrification of 50 000 households at Windhoek’s informal settlements at a cost of US$485 000. The bank said the financial institution’s Urban and Municipal Development Fund had approved a grant for a solar electricity project to power houses in the country.

The Informal Settlement Renewable Electrification and Upgrading Programme will directly benefit around 200 000 people in Windhoek, where around 20% of the population does not have electricity.

WRITING-OFF DEBT

City of Windhoek chief executive officer Moses Matyayi in a media statement on Monday said the city is exploring various debt management methods and is bound by legal mandates such as the Prescription Act and charging interest as per the Local Authorities Act.

During the council meeting, Windhoek mayor Joseph Uapingene restated the council’s position on the petition submitted by the Katutura Residents Committee on writing off debts.

He said the city has decided to charge only a 15% down payment for pensioners, instead of the 33,3% requirement as per the City’s credit control policy. According to the mayor, the council believes RedForce Debt Management is the viable option for debt collection on behalf of the city.

He said the city charges 20% per annum on arrears, while RedForce charges only 10% on amounts paid.

“Prior to the appointment of RedForce, clients’ accounts were handed over to attorneys for further debt collection, which has proven to be expensive and provided no guarantee of financial benefit to the city or the client,” he said.

In contrast, RedForce only charges 10% of actual payments received by the council, making it a more financially feasible option.

Uapingene said no pensioner’s residential property account is handed over to RedForce, and that no interest is charged on accounts handed over to the company for all residents, except for a collection fee of 10% on each payment made.

“The city is currently working on a proposal to write off debt for pensioners and interest for all residents.

“However, this process must be executed with caution to ensure long-term sustainability,” the mayor said.