adminOne such area is housing development. NSSA’s investment policy provides for the inclusion of investments that improve the well-being of members and beneficiaries of its schemes.
The provision of residential accommodation and other social amenities are specifically mentioned in the investment policy falling within this category of investment, along with investment in areas that generate productive employment, higher productivity and export competitiveness.
Between 1994 and 2000 NSSA financed housing through building societies. Through investment in paid-up permanent shares it financed high-density housing development in Chegutu, Shamva, Norton, Kuwadzana in Harare and Cowdray Park in Bulawayo and 22 low-density Woodlands town houses in Bulawayo.
From 2001 onwards it became more directly involved in housing developments, purchasing land for housing development purposes and servicing and providing infrastructure for housing on land it had acquired.
Stands developed in this way are either sold to individuals, mainly those on council housing waiting lists, or sold to a building society, which sometimes build houses
on these stands that they will sell to individuals.
The building society makes mortgage finance available for such purchases. In some cases NSSA has not only developed serviced stands but constructed houses as well.
One of the major and most recently completed investments by NSSA in residential accommodation is the first phase of its Glaudina housing project on the outskirts of Harare along the Bulawayo Road.
There are 394 medium-density stands and 73 high-density stands that have been developed there making a total of 467 housing stands altogether.
Apart from the residential stands, the development includes commercial stands, flat sites and stands for a church, civic centre and secondary school. FBC Building Society, in which NSSA has a 40 percent stake, is responsible for the marketing and selling of the stands as well as the provision of mortgage finance.
The building society bought 100 of the 394 medium-density stands. It has already erected about 80 houses on these stands for the benefit of those who prefer to buy an already built house rather than a stand on which to build their own house. Servicing of the stands and tarring of the roads at Glaudina was completed last December. There are plans to build flats for sale on the flat sites.
Glaudina was previously a farm, so there is plenty of room for development. NSSA plans to use another part of the farm for a high- density housing project that will see it servicing 1 600 stands.
In Marondera, NSSA completed last year the servicing of 699 high-density stands in Rusike. Previously it had built 204 houses in the same suburb. In Masvingo NSSA intends to develop just over 600 high-density residential stands in Runyararo, where it has 20 hectares of undeveloped land.
It has provided the city council with a US$2,1 million loan to enable it to carry out off-site water and sewerage facilities to which on-site water and sewerage facilities could be connected. The council has commenced work on the off-site infrastructure, which it expects to complete in October.
NSSA expects to start work on the servicing of the stands in the second quarter of this year.
The authority is also planning to develop housing stands in Bulawayo where it is in the process of trying to acquire land for this purpose, preferably near Luveve. The Bulawayo City Council repossessed land that had previously been acquired in Luveve.
NSSA has acquired land in a number of other cities and towns for housing development. Utilisation of some of this land has been hampered by the absence of off-site infrastructure.
Hyperinflation also hampered work on some proposed developments. Some local authorities repossessed land that had not been developed within the timeframe originally stipulated.
However, NSSA continues to try to contribute to the nation’s housing stock and to play a part in reducing the deficit there is in available housing.
These housing investments are aimed at providing the pension fund with a good return on its investment and contributing to the well-being of the communities in the areas in which the investments are made by helping reduce the acute housing shortage that the country has been facing.
l Talking Social Security is published weekly by the National Social Security Authority as a public service. There is also a weekly radio programme, PaMhepo neNssa/Emoyeni leNSSA, discussing social security issues at 6.50pm every Thursday on Radio Zimbabwe and every Friday on National FM. There is another social security programme on Star FM on Wednesdays after 5pm.
Readers can e-mail issues they would like dealt with in this column to [email protected] or text them to
077 2 307 913. Those with individual queries should contact their local NSSA office or telephone NSSA on (04) 706517-8 or 706523-5.
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