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Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis requesting more affordable housing funding is nothing more than a political stunt. The DA-led Western Cape has been unable to deliver on its housing mandate, leaving hundreds of thousands of families trapped in poor living conditions.
The number of formal houses delivered across the entire province has gone down from an already low base of 8,038 houses in 2019/20 to 4,998 in 2023/24.
And what is worse, over the past two financial years, the Western Cape Government has underspent Informal Settlement Upgrade Grant to the tune of R335 million – nearly one-third of the allocated grant. The Province's underspending has lost them over half a billion Rand (R505 million) of housing funding.
In a response to questions posed by GOOD, the MEC for Infrastructure, Tertuis Simmers revealed that, in 2023/24, R250 million allocated for building houses has been reallocated to other provinces who are capable of spending this funding on housing. He also revealed that R255 million allocated for upgrading informal settlements was forfeited by the Province over the past three years.
Housing delivery in the Western Cape has clearly collapsed under the DA. They have been unable to deliver on the target they set for themselves.
Financial Year Target for houses Actual houses
or units or units delivered
• 2019/20 9,723 8,038
• 2020/21 8,506 6,247
• 2021/22 8,272 6,191
• 2022/23 8,463 5,380
• 2023/24 5,833 4,998
Hill-Lewis should look closer to home before blaming National Government for the City’s housing failures.
Issued by Suzette Little, GOOD City of Cape Town Councillor & Caucus Chairperson 
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