ILMI Updates: October 2016

Two lunch talks took place in October, one on rapid/alternative land delivery and another on strategies to support informal trade in the case of Angola (see below).

ILMI is coordinating the support of NUST to the Mass Urban Land Servicing Programme (MULSP). During November, we will hold a talk for NUST faculty regarding the progress made during this year, as well as ideas on the way that the University's contribution can be of increased benefit for both parties.

ILMI's publications were displayed at the Department of Land and Property Sciences' stand at the Windhoek show.

The third in the series of talks on 'Rapid/alternative land delivery in Namibia' took place on the topic of 'Planned layouts v. 'planning for slums': the case of Rehoboth Ext. 5 & 6' in Rehoboth, by Louis Esterhuizen. You can read the documentat of the event here.

Martin Mendelsohn presented a project titled "Space, place and belonging: informal trading in and around Congolenses market, Luanda, Angola". You can see the photographs of the even here.

FEATURE

"Most research is in the north; most need is in the south."

Comment on prestigious Nature journal by top academics in the socio-spatial field calling for further involvement of science in urban development and for the overcoming the uneven geographies of socio-spatial research between the Global South and North.

(Read full article here)

Land, livelihoods and housing news in Namibia

[From South Africa] Department of Human Settlements reaches only 1/5^th of annual target in its delivery of title deeds. (Link here)

Land conference is postponed. (Link here)

Group of landless farmers occupy government farm. (Link here)

Government to audit state’s properties, speculation of sales. (Link here)

Properties in Academia sold in commercial sector despite Minister’s recommendation for these to be sold to first-time buyers only. (Link here)

Water masterplan based on connection of inland dams. (Link here)

Informal settlements in Oshakati offered electricity connection free of charge by company partly owned by Town Council. (Link here)

Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (Cites) hailed as ‘success’ by Namibian government. (Link here)

Commercial farmers discuss bleak scenario for livestock production. (Link here)

SRCs of higher education institutions discuss students’ housing crisis in forum. (Link here)

Namibia Agricultural Union discuss land issues; discard expropriation as a threat. (Link here)

Community members of Maltahöhe decry granting of resettlement land to people coming from other parts of the country; threaten ‘land occupations’. (Link here)

Standard Bank and Shackdwellers’ Federation continue a second phase of their ‘buy a brick’ campaign; MURD Deputy Minister urges ‘every Namibian and corporate sector’ to contribute to this. (Link here)

Omaruru appoints water consultant to identify alternative water sources in views of water shortage. (Link here)

‘Guarding millions, paid peanuts’: security guards struggle to ‘pay rent and take care of their families’. (Link here)

Company donates window and door frames to First Lady’s One Economy Foundation. (Link here)

Namibia hunger situation ‘serious’ according to the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) Global Hunger Index. (Link here)

Bank Windhoek managing director attributes high housing costs to land and construction; she also attributes profits of the Bank to their property division. (Link here)

Phosphate mining given a go-ahead. (Link here) Permission is then deemed ‘illegal’. (Link here)

Arandis Mayor claims “no shacks” exist within its boundaries, and speaks about alternative housing pilots being implemented. (Link here)

National and international demonstrations against sale of wildlife by Namibia to China. (Link here)

Court order instructs illegal settlers to remove illegal fences from area inhabited by San community. (Link here)

“We are aiming for the same thing”: Vice-president tells commercial farmers at Namibia Agricultural Union event. (Link here)

Road connecting Western Bypass to eastern road to airport to continue. (Link here)

Government plan for addressing water crisis to cost N$270m. (Link here)

Tragic gas explosion at Dordabis farm leaves ten people dead. (Link here)

City of Windhoek partners with City of San Antonio in water management, energy policies and housing. (Link here)

Stalled mass housing projects in Otjomuise and Khomasdal to be re-negotiated; contractors in partnership with South African developers. (Link here)

Migration to Opuwo increases due to drought. (Link here)

German-funded large projects for ‘community forestry’ announced for Northern village. (Link here)

About ILMI. The Integrated Land Management Institute is a centre of the Faculty of Natural Resources and Spatial Sciences (FNRSS) at the Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST) committed to develop reputable and multidisciplinary research and public outreach activities in the field of land administration, property, architecture and spatial planning.