HOUSINGWhat’s wrong
HOUSINGWhat’s wrong with SouthAfrica’s low-cost housingmodel and how to fix itThe backlog of subsidised public housing in South Africa is estimated at 2.4-million. Inthis interview, Hlengiwe Maila, a research fellow at the School of Public Management andAdministration at the University of Pretoria, answers questions posed by Associate ProfessorAdrino Mazenda about possible solutions. Maila’s PhD thesis, which was jointly supervisedby Mazenda and Professor Lianne Malan, focused on developing a new model for theSouth African housing sector. This interview first appeared in The Conversation Africa.What’s the current system and what’s wrong with it?Currently, public housing is built on the basis of contracts issuedby the government. But the model is failing. First, it has becomefinancially unsustainable for the government. This is evident in theshrinking budget for housing.Second, the number of houses being delivered has declined,from 75 000 units in 2019 to 25 000 units in 2023. Yet the demandfor housing is increasing. Third, using contractors to buildsubsidised housing often results in poor workmanship. The focusis on mass delivery (quantity) and less on quality. Fourth, thecontractor model keeps people dependent on the government.Fifth, the model is prone to corruption and political interference.Public officials and politicians award housing along party lines oras part of corruption networks.Lastly, the model doesn’t address the needs of communities.People are often allocated a house far away from where theylive. They’re uprooted from their livelihood strategies andsocial networks.Is there an alternative?I set out the case for a co-productive approach. Co-production isa cooperative approach to delivering public goods and services.Instead of a top-down approach of a single provider (state, marketor NGO), it involves the people who receive the services.Co-production can involve beneficiaries throughout theproject’s design, planning, implementation and maintenance.This results in a sense of ownership of projects and a value forthe services co-produced. It would usually take the form of futureresidents of a planned housing project taking part in communitymeetings, surveys and workshops where they can share theirhousing preferences, priorities and concerns. Architects, urbanplanners and other experts would incorporate the feedback intothe design of the homes. The design would reflect the residents’needs around accessibility, community spaces and cultural orsocial factors.Demand for housing is increasing, but thecurrent model is not delivering.Beneficiaries would also help to identify potential locations forthe housing project and offer input on the community’s layout. Theywould contribute to decisions about communal amenities such asgardens, childcare facilities or green spaces. They could volunteertheir labour or skills directly in construction or oversee the qualityof work.After construction, beneficiaries might help maintain thehousing project through community-managed services, like repairs,cleaning or organising events. This fosters a sense of ownership.Why is co-production a better approach?Co-production empowers residents, sustains projects andstrengthens community ties. For example, the government’s rolein Bangladesh has changed from providing housing to facilitatinglocally driven housing co-production. It does this through a lowincomehousing loan.In the Bijlmermeer neighbourhood of Amsterdam, Netherlands,government and local stakeholders took a co-production approachto regenerate the area. Residents got involved in everythingfrom design to management and decision-making. This improvedpublic spaces, housing quality and social integration in a placethat initially faced high poverty rates and social unrest.In Kigali, Rwanda, the government set up urban planning andhousing projects involving the local community. These projectsfocus on slum upgrading and new affordable housing.40 | www.opportunityonline.co.zaPHOTO: Graeme Williams/ Brand SA
HOUSINGThe co-production approachrevitalised the Bijlmermeerneighbourhood inAmsterdam.One of the advantages of housing co-productionis the introduction of new resources. They canbe financial or in terms of capacity, knowledge ortechnologies. Other advantages include:• greater acceptability of the process by the community• better use of existing skills and resources withinthe community• better trust and confidence between all parties• an improvement in the relationship betweencommunities and government officials• a greater sense of belonging and ownership.But are people willing to participate?South African citizens have repeatedly shown theirwillingness to contribute towards providing theirshelter and not be bystanders or passive recipients.Many South Africans engage in self-help housingprojects: they build their homes from scratch, oftenusing recycled materials.Other initiatives, such as the Abahlali base-Mjondolo movement, involve shack dwellers whomobilise for land rights and proper housing and against forcedevictions. These initiatives take collective action on housing issues.In some areas, especially after natural disasters or urban fires,communities have come together to rebuild homes, distributefood and support displaced families.However, past studies have shown that public officials maymistrust ordinary people’s skills and experience. According tomost respondents in my PhD study, NGOs, private organisations,civic groups and movements representing communities werewilling to partner with the government on housing co-production.But they met resistance from public officials in local municipalitiesand housing departments. This was mostly due to lack of capacityand resources.One respondent in the PhD research said: the bureaucrats getimpatient with managing community dynamics, because whenyou get communities involved, things may move slowly. But, overtime, communities have shown that where they are involved, theyprotect the asset.What are the barriers to this model?The housing co-production model might experience the followingchallenges:Inadequate community mobilisation and participation: Coproductionrequires a high level of community involvement andcommitment.Financial mismanagement and inadequate funding: Insufficientand poorly managed funding can derail any development project.Infrastructure and general service delivery: Without reliable accessto clean water, sanitation and electricity, the homes will not besustainable.Political and institutional challenges: Successful co-productionrequires strong collaboration and communication. Political tensionsand institutional fragmentation can undermine the project’s success.Unrealistic expectations: The community may lack the resourcesand infrastructure to achieve its goals, leading to frustration anddisengagement.What needs to be done?All the actors or stakeholders involved must be willing toco-produce. Co-production requires a change in the relations andbehaviour of public servants and citizens or users.They must trust each other and have clear roles andresponsibilities so they can hold each other accountable.Government must respond to communities’ specific needs, whichvary based on geographical, social, economic and cultural factors.Adequate resources, both financial and human, must becommitted.The government has to ensure that users remain involvedthroughout the project phases.Government employees and community members needtraining to equip them to manage projects together.Finally, online consultations, crowdsourcing ideas and digitalfeedback-monitoringsystems should be established to trackprogress.ABOUT THE PARTICIPANTSHlengiwe Maila, a research fellow at the School of PublicManagement and Administration at the University of Pretoria,interrogated the model for South African low-cost housing forhis PhD thesis. Adrino Mazenda is Senior Researcher, AssociateProfessor Economic Management Sciences, University of Pretoria.ABOUT THE CONVERSATION AFRICAThe Conversation is funded by the National Research Foundation,eight universities, including the Cape Peninsula University ofTechnology, Rhodes University, Stellenbosch University andthe universities of Cape Town, Johannesburg, Kwa-Zulu Natal,Pretoria and South Africa. It is hosted by the Universities of theWitwatersrand and the Western Cape, the African Population andHealth Research Centre and the Nigerian Academy of Science. TheBill & Melinda Gates Foundation is a Strategic Partner.PHOTO: Urban Symbiose on Facebookwww.opportunityonline.co.za | 41
