Shelter culture
If we are going to give dignity to those without shelter, we need to work together to support efforts related to homeownership.
By Nondumiso Ncapai
Managing Executive of Absa Home Loans
When people believe they have a stake in the future of their country, such as having access to homeownership, hope will manifest in collaborative efforts. But first, let us all play a role in providing access to shelter.
The facts
The Constitution of South Africa guarantees access to adequate housing as a basic human right, and the essence of this lies within the Preamble of the Constitution, with the profound statement: ‘improve the quality of life of all citizens and free the potential of each person.’
It is for every person to play a role in elevating shelter as a basic human right because shelter touches on quality of life, as does South Africa’s most recent challenge, access to power.
There is an incredible amount of work to be done to elevate shelter, as evidenced in these numbers: population per Stats SA in 2022 is 62 million; and almost 18-million households. Of the 88,5% of formal dwellings that people resided in, only 41,6% were owned and fully paid off; with the balance comprising traditional, informal and other types of shelter.
The proportion of households that reside in informal dwellings may have halved from 16,2% in 1996 to 8,1% in 2022, but while there remains those that either have no access to proper shelter or own their property, means we still have much work to do. If we are going to give dignity, we have to collaborate to support efforts on homeownership. To do so, as I see it, are three critical areas we need to address, be that individually, as communities, as business stakeholders, government, regulators and as a unified nation.
Commitment to three steps
The first is ‘collaboration and partnerships’ within the sector and across the myriad of industries and economic contributors. Secondly, we need to ‘challenge’ one another to focus harder on addressing the gaps that perpetuate inequalities and find progressive solutions. Finally, ‘execution’. This is where we get better at bringing plans to life.
Our efforts and solutions must be cognisant of the post-COVID world, where we have seen macro headwinds paint a completely different picture for ordinary South Africans, who have had to contend with losses, both human and business. South Africans are battling with the rising cost of living and increasing interest rates that raise the cost of credit. We see the effects again in the numbers with high unemployment estimated at 32.6% in South Africa in Q2: 2023, according to the World Economic Forum.
The Growth Mindset
Last year I spoke at the 2022 Real Estate Industry Summit (REIS) presented by Private Property in partnership with Absa (see video sidebar), in which the industry talked about how we ‘Gear for Growth’.
One of the aspects that comes into play here, as we gear for growth, is how we leverage and learn from ‘ecosystem thinking’, which relates to the interconnected services within our industry. Carlos Torres Vila, chairman and former CEO of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA) highlighted this when he said:
“All sectors are changing rapidly and the lines separating industries are disappearing. It is more important than ever to work together with all the digital ecosystem, including startups as well as big companies.”
Taking this into consideration means we cannot push a problem to a particular stakeholder grouping. We need to realise the impact ‘we’ can all make in our own spheres of influence and control, whilst we form partnerships. Ecosystems cannot exist without partners.
Commercial viability and role in society
I do believe, however, that we all need to think deeply about our role in society.
Certainly, at Absa we are alive to the impact we have in the societies in which we operate, and what we still need to do, be that for those who have the basic right to a roof over their heads, or facilitating access to a registered home.
One such is our support for the Khaya Lam initiative from the Free Market Foundation, which empowers families by securing their title deeds, and sets them on the path to become economic participants.
Since 2018, Absa has delivered home ownership education to more than 32 000 homeowners in the affordable housing segment, providing guidance on not just what it means to borrow and leverage property, but also all the important add-ons that go hand-in-hand, such as insurance to protect one’s legacy.
We have also advanced our digital capability by delivering the My Homeowner Journey platform that comprehensively guides potential and existing property owners to understand the ins and outs of homeownership and is available to all members of the public, whether or not they are an Absa client.
I can talk about our Eco Home Loan where we partnered with Balwin and the Green Building Council to become the first bank to introduce green home loans to the country in 2020, and how Absa pioneered this path for others to follow.
More recently the highlight for me is how we, at Absa, look for innovative financing solutions. Take our partnership with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), which enables the expansion of ‘sustainable’ construction and encouraging the demand for “green builds” in SA.
These are but a handful of examples of how we can play a meaningful role beyond delivering on our commercial mandate as an organisation.
Inspiring hope
When people feel that they have a stake in the country, the possibility of hope and individual control manifests, and meaningful economic gain can be realised.
At Absa we respond by springing forward in support because beyond our role as a bank that exists to serve, we are listening to and understanding the pain points of our customers and designing solutions to meet their needs and realise their dreams.
I personally feel that none of us should ever rest easy when we hear of a child dying because he or she fell into a pit toilet. Yes, there is a lot of work to be done and so I encourage all of us to work together with a collective growth mindset. We must continue to develop innovative solutions and leverage our partnership ecosystems so that we can make real the homeownership dreams of the million in need of owned and dignified shelter.