The Gauteng provincial government will release thousands of serviced stands to residents who are able to build houses for themselves but cannot qualify for bonded houses.

The announcement was made by premier David Makhura in his state of the province address held in Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University on Tuesday. “We will release 10 000 serviced stands spread across the different corridors between April and June this year. This gives impetus to the rapid land release programme,” Makhura said.

Serviced stands have been adopted by both the provincial and local government as an easier alternative in the provision of houses in Gauteng.

In the programme, government provides basic services such as water, electricity, sanitation and roads and the owner of the property then builds their own home. The move enables both spheres of government to reduce the number of people waiting for fully subsidized funded houses.

Makhura said the provincial government will also complete unfinished housing projects including urban renewal projects.

These include projects in Alexandra, Evaton, Kliptown, Bekkersdal and Winterveldt. He added that the provincial government has adopted a land invasion prevention strategy to “deal decisively with criminal syndicates and political entrepreneurs who are behind illegal occupation of land”.

The provincial government has already partnered with National Housing Finance Corporation, Indlu and Umastandi social entrepreneurs, to enable township property owners to develop formal backrooms in the townships. This is expected to provide an additional 250 000 people with affordable accommodation over then next five to 10 years.

Backyard dwellers in townships have been a nuisance for municipalities for years. As home owners retire and have little income, they build informal structures in their properties.

Electricity is then connected to these structures without proper design and municipal approval.  This pushes demand on electricity infrastructure and causes green small boxes controlling supply to malfunction or explode.

Soweto is one of the township famous for this tendency.