Patience Makwele
Former and current members of the Windhoek council say some improvements were made in land servicing and municipal reforms, but the demand for housing continues to outpace supply.
Windhoek’s population is estimated at about 486 186 residents. About 224 000 people live in informal settlements, placing pressure on housing and land delivery in the capital.
Joseph Uapingene, a former councillor who served from 2020 to 2025, representing the National Unity Democratic Organisation (Nudo), said the council made progress in servicing land and facilitating housing development.
According to Uapingene, the municipality serviced about 1,200 urban plots and about 800 houses were built during that period.
“Perhaps we did not deliver exactly as promised, but there was progress in land delivery and other services,” he said.
Uapingene said the pace of development was slower than expected due to structural challenges.
“The process is slow mainly because of the capacity of the local authority and the availability of funds,” he said.
He also rejected claims that political divisions within the council significantly affected decision-making.
“In most cases we did not differ because of politics. We differed based on the merits of the issues being discussed,” he said.
Uapingene admitted that the council struggled to make progress in road maintenance.
“One area where we did not perform as expected was the repair of roads and potholes. We did some work, but it was less than what we had anticipated,” he said.
Current councillor Ignatius Semba said earlier council administrations made improvements in the municipality’s financial management systems.
He said mechanisms were introduced to strengthen revenue collection and improve debt recovery.
“When you look at the mechanisms introduced for debt collection and revenue generation, you can see that the municipality has made progress in improving its financial position,” he said.
Semba said the growth of informal settlements remains a major challenge for the city.
“The issue of informal settlements remains a serious challenge,” he said.
He said rapid urbanisation has made it difficult for the municipality to keep up with the demand for serviced land and formal housing.
Semba said the municipality cannot solve the housing crisis without support from the central government.
“The municipality cannot deal with the housing crisis alone. Servicing land requires substantial resources, and without sufficient financial support, it becomes difficult to meet the demand,” he said.
He also raised concerns about communication between the municipality and residents.
“Many residents do not know what the municipality is planning. Communities often do not know when their areas will be formalised or when development projects will reach them,” he said.
Former Windhoek mayor Ndeshihafela Larandja said the municipality expanded services and infrastructure in several areas between 2020 and 2025.
She said about 4,000 zinc houses were connected to electricity during that period in constituencies such as Moses Garoeb, Khomasdal, Tobias Hainyeko and Samora Machel.
Larandja said the city also installed 28 high-mast lights in several communities to improve lighting and safety.
She said the council approved a modified electricity universal access project that allows electricity connections to informal structures where they currently stand while creating access routes for services.
“This approach will enable the city to connect more than 9,400 houses per year,” she said.
Larandja said the municipality also built 520 houses under the informal settlement housing programme and serviced 473 greenfield plots.
However, she said population growth continues to put pressure on city resources.
“Windhoek is the seat of government and an economic hub, which results in a high influx of people into the city and places pressure on limited resources,” she said.
Community activist Shaun Gariseb questioned the overall performance of previous councils and said many promises made to residents were not fulfilled.
“Of course they failed,” Gariseb said. “For three years we have been petitioning and advocating for better service delivery, particularly around land and housing.”
Gariseb said the expansion of informal settlements shows that the city has not made enough progress in addressing the housing shortage.
“We have seen the rapid growth of informal settlements and very little progress in land delivery,” he said.
He also said the municipality lacks a clear long-term plan for dealing with informal settlements and urban expansion.
“There is no clear plan that shows how the city will deal with informal settlements. Communities continue to grow without proper services such as electricity and water”, he said.
Gariseb said the city appears to focus more on revenue collection than on service delivery.
“The city seems more focused on finding ways to make money from residents through rates and taxes instead of prioritising service delivery,” he said.
He said the current council should improve transparency and engage more with residents.
“The first thing the council must do is prioritise honesty and listen to ratepayers and opposition parties as well as residents. The challenges facing the city are known, and what is needed now is the political will to address them,” he said.
