Note to Editors: Please note Riona Gokool, MPL sound bite in English
KwaZulu-Natal’s (KZN) Department of Human Settlements (DHS), under MEC Siboniso Duma, has failed to meet delivery targets across its most critical mandates, despite reporting 100% financial expenditure of its 2024/25 R3.9billion adjusted budget.
The damning information came to light during a recent KZN Legislature Human Settlements portfolio committee, during which officials outlined the department’s fourth quarter reports and proposed Annual Oversight Plan (AOP) for 2025/26.
The DA in KZN deeply is concerned by the revelations contained within the fourth quarter reports.
The reality is that out of a total of 50 performance indicators, only 28% exceeded targets and 36% underperformed, notably within Programmes 2 (Planning), 3 (Housing Development), and 4 (Asset Management). This reflects a serious misalignment between expenditure and actual outcomes, raising concerns of inefficiency, poor planning and lack of consequence management.
Key DHS failures include;
· Only 21 out of a 410 targeted post-1994 title deeds registered
· Zero community residential units delivered out of a targeted 270
· No informal settlements upgraded to Phase 3 despite escalating housing backlogs
· Only 540 disaster relief houses delivered out of 1 500 targeted units and;
· Zero accredited training provided through EPWP, despite a goal of 60 beneficiaries
Many of the underperforming indicators are due to recurring issues. These include budget cuts, delays in land procurement and rezoning, underperforming service providers, and lack of capacity in key municipalities. The department also failed to provide progress updates on long-outstanding projects, including housing for military veterans and legacy disaster recovery projects such as Jika Joe in Pietermaritzburg.
It is alarming that internal capacity constraints, moratoriums on filling critical posts and non-compliance in reporting continue to hamper meaningful delivery to the people of KZN. The DA further notes the that departments reporting lacks transparency and supporting documentation, making government oversight difficult and accountability elusive.
While the Draft AOP 2025/26 outlined noble priorities – from eradicating transit camps to improving title deed issuance and boosting integrated spatial development – it failed to address the core administrative and operational weaknesses that are crippling delivery.
Given this, the DA now calls for the following as a matter of urgency:
· Immediate reform in procurement and SCM compliance, particularly with payment delays risking service provider collapse
· Restructuring of project planning frameworks to prioritise stalled and incomplete projects, including urgent rural housing interventions
· Increased accountability from municipalities and implementing agents, including regular progress tracking on priority projects and;
· Restoration of credibility to the FLISP subsidy programme, which continues to fail lower-income households due to rigid criteria and limited departmental support.
KZN’s ongoing housing crisis requires a capable, transparent, and performance-driven DHS. As part of KZN’s Government of Provincial Unity (GPU), the DA now calls on MEC Duma and the portfolio committee to urgently address systemic delivery failures and to ensure that the R3.9 billion budget directly improves the lives of the people it serves.
It is only through meaningful oversight, decisive leadership and competent management that this department can reclaim its constitutional mandate of restoring dignity through decent, sustainable housing.