Khaya Lam “My home” Land Reform Project
On February 9, the Free State government, the Ngwathe Municipality, First National Bank (FNB) and The Free Market Foundation (FMF) in effect injected R20 million of previously “dead capital” into the local economy of Tumahole township, the Soweto of Parys, when 200 tenants became homeowners at no cost to themselves and received full title deed to their homes worth on average R100,000 each. Khaya Lam (My home) is an initiative that seeks to reverse the evils of the apartheid system. During apartheid, blacks were prevented from owning property and accessing the financial benefits that full title brought to the white community. For such a system to prevail today across most of South Africa is an anachronism of the past. For this reason, the FMF, together with local authority partners and sponsors, is working towards creating a blueprint which can be extended across the whole country to get rid of an apartheid legacy and create property owning communities who can decide for themselves how, when, and why to sell, transfer or hold onto their own property.
Khaya Lam, which is transformation through ownership, is sponsored by FNB and has the backing of Free State Premier Ace Magashule and the support of all political parties in Ngwathe. A title deed is a profoundly powerful tool, a game changer for millions of this country’s poorest citizens. It can unlock dead capital into the hands of those who need it most and through them, into the economy.
Dr Simphiwe Madikizela, Managing Executive for Special Projects and Retail Sales at FNB Housing Finance said, “The Khaya Lam land reform project has come a long way and today marks one of the greatest milestones. It is an amazing achievement. Today we witnessed 200 titles is being handed out to people who now have their feet on the ladder to future prosperity. FNB is proud, privileged and humbled to be part of this important initiative”.
FMF executive director, Leon Louw, said, “Black land deprivation was probably the single worst element of apartheid. Ever since apartheid ended, little has changed. In South Africa today there are still between 7 million and 10 million black families living as tenants or without ownership rights in houses they have lived in for generations. There has been no systematic conversion of these “council owned” and “traditional community” properties to full unrestricted ownership. The prospects for economic upliftment throughout South Africa through the Khaya Lam national property titling project are exciting and immense”.
FNB CEO Housing Finance, Lee Mhlongo, said, “Through titling, people can own a part of where they live. They and their families now have an asset and an investment for the future. While we remain proud and privileged to have partnered with the FMF to get this project off ground, this is much bigger than FNB. The commercial banks and everyone in South Africa can participate in realising the full and true value of this initiative. We can turn back living patterns based on race. Black and white citizens can live anywhere”.
The FMF is the driving force behind Khaya Lam, which aims to bring about a true end to land discrimination by assisting the transfer of title deeds to tenants currently occupying municipality owned land and houses under apartheid era regulations.
Corporate and individual sponsors, including farmers, are making true transformation possible. The cost of converting one property to freehold title is a modest R1,950. The transfer of Ngwathe’s municipal rental housing stock into the hands of former tenants could release an estimated R2 billion of much-needed capital into the local economy which currently suffers a high level of poverty and unemployment.
Potential sponsors are urgently needed and are invited to contact Perry Feldman, perryfeldman@fmfsa.org or 082 557 8130
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