Online Reporter
Africa Moyo-Deputy National Editor
ZIMBABWE has unlocked more than US$1 billion in housing finance under the National Development Strategy 1, surpassing the projected US$233,75 million, National Housing and Social Amenities Minister Zhemu Soda said yesterday.
In an interview at his Harare office, Minister Soda said the funding milestone demonstrates the country’s growing capacity to attract investment locally and regionally, into the housing and infrastructure sectors.
“Improving access to housing finance is one of our key deliverables under the NDS1 housing delivery cluster,” he said.
“Surpassing our initial target by such a significant margin is a clear sign of market confidence and our effective engagement with both local and regional financial institutions.”
From 2021, the ministry had a target of 220 000 housing units, but surpassed that, prompting Cabinet to extend the target to one million.
Already, over 800 000 housing units have been delivered, spurred by Zimbabwe’s capacity to fund them.
Minister Soda said they count fully serviced stands and finished houses.
He said one of the major contributors to the success in mobilising finance has been Zimbabwe’s active shareholding at the Shelter Afrique Development Bank (ShafDB), a pan-African multilateral institution focused on resource mobilisation for housing and infrastructure development.
Zimbabwe is a Class A shareholder in the ShafDB, and it has accessed US$85 million since 2010, with US$30 million obtained during the NDS1 period.
The funds were disbursed through local banks such as CBZ and BancABC.
To further bolster access to housing finance, Zimbabwe has applied for a capital increase facility of over US$8,8 million to ShafDB from the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA).
Minister Soda said this will see the country’s shareholding in ShafDB increase from 1,25 percent to 5 percent, giving Zimbabwe greater leverage in future financial disbursements.
The facility has already been approved by the BADEA board of directors and awaits the signing of relevant agreements.
“Our growing stake in ShafDB reflects our long-term commitment to regional cooperation and infrastructure development.
“It allows Zimbabwe to tap into larger capital pools for housing finance and delivery,” he said.
Zimbabwe has also participated in the VIRAL model research, which is Vision, Institutions, Regulations, Actors, Local Initiatives, a framework developed by ShafDB with financial support from the African Development Bank.
Minister Soda said this initiative assesses national housing ecosystems, especially around affordability and sustainability.
Locally, the Ministry of National Housing and Social Amenities has been instrumental in attracting private sector investment through the issuance of Letters of Support for Prescribed Asset Status, enabling several large-scale housing and infrastructure projects.
These include FBC Bank’s US$3,6 million Four Miles housing project in Zvishavane, the US$7,9 million funding for Chinhoyi student accommodation by the Mining Industry Pension Fund (MIPF), and the US$3,653 million Gokwe shopping mall development among others.
Minister Soda said the above projects demonstrate how public-private partnerships can be leveraged to close the housing gap and improve access to essential services in underserved areas.
The minister also said regularisation of illegal settlements has emerged as a key pillar of the ministry’s long-term housing strategy.
The approach includes land replanning, production of engineering designs for water, sewer, roads and storm water systems, followed by infrastructure development and issuance of compliance certificates and title deeds.
“The title deeds unlock housing finance since they provide collateral. On regularisation, the title will be endorsed to allow for repayment on investments made by the financial arrangers.
“This regularisation process is anchored on a user-pay model, allowing beneficiaries to repay investments under flexible terms,” he said.
To operationalise the regularisation plan, President Mnangagwa launched the Presidential Title Deeds Programme in 2023 while a special purpose vehicle (SPV) — the Kwangu/Ngakwami Presidential Title Deeds Programme Trust — was established to lead the process, mobilise private sector funding and oversee the digital issuance of title deeds.
Kwangu enables Government to formalise informal settlements in a structured, sustainable manner.
Minister Soda said the move will unlock land value, improve tenure security and attract further investment in housing infrastructure.
As part of Zimbabwe’s ongoing engagement and re-engagement drive, the Ministry of National Housing and Social Amenities has signed many Memoranda of Understanding with countries such as Egypt, Rwanda, Angola and Botswana, with advanced discussions underway with Kenya and Algeria.
The partnerships are focused on knowledge exchange, affordable housing delivery and access to new financing and technologies.
