KNYSNA NEWS - The Deputy Minister of Human Settlements, Tandi Mahambehlala, conducted an oversight visit to Knysna Municipality on Monday.
Mahambehlala engaged with municipal leadership on the state of human settlements in the area and attended a title deed handover ceremony in Hornlee.
Senior municipal officials, led by Mayor Thando Matika and Municipal Manager Lulamile Mapholoba, presented an overview of Knysna's human settlements landscape. The presentation outlined the scale of Knysna's housing challenges. Currently the municipality has an estimated backlog of 9 815 households - and this is increasing at a rate of 3% annually.
"Despite constrained funding and infrastructure limitations, we have continued to pursue innovative solutions," said Matika. "These include upgrading informal settlements and progressing with several major pipeline housing projects across Karatara, Rheenendal and Heidevallei."
It was noted that annual housing delivery remains limited to around 100 units, with significant capital investment required to address bulk services and land acquisition.
Officials also highlighted the growing pressures of in-migration and the need for increased support from provincial and national government to unlock stalled developments.
Matika highlighted the munici-pality's efforts to accelerate the Title Deed Restoration Programme.
"We have faced delays due to historic planning issues, technical challenges and limited funding allocations," he said. "We did achieve a breakthrough with the signing of a memorandum of understanding between ourselves and the Free Market Foundation's Khaya Lam initiative in 2024. This has already enabled the delivery of the first batch of title deeds and aims to address a backlog of 1 600 title deeds by the end of 2025."
The deputy minister joined residents in celebrating the handover of more than 80 long-awaited title deeds in Hornlee.
One of the title deeds beneficiaries, Juliana Danhausen, said she was happy to receive her title deed after many years. "Now I have something to leave behind for my children."
Nozipho Skosona shared a similar sentiment: "I am very happy to finally receive my title deed. Now I know I have a house that belongs to me."
The deputy minister commended the municipality for its efforts under challenging conditions. She reaffirmed the national department's commitment to working with local government to fast-track housing delivery and promote sustainable human settlements.
‘We bring you the latest Garden Route, Hessequa, Karoo news’
