Africa News Online - Botswana

Botswana News Online Links to news and updates about Botswana as well as latest news headlines from local and international sources. 3.11.06 GABORONE - Botswana Housing Corporation (BHC) chairperson, Mr Maclean Letshwiti says the institution continues to make significant efforts to meet its aims despite challenges such as the rapid pace of urbanisation. Mr Letshwiti writes in the BHCs 2005 Annual Report that other challeges they encounter in their efforts to provide the nation with housing include serious economic challenges and the impact of HIV/AIDS pandemic on productivity. Others include increased spending on the fight against HIV/AIDS and the need to control and reduce overall expenditure. He says during the past year the corporation did not increase its rentals pursuant to the objective of ensuring that its products and services are market-related in line with a previous directive from the government, which clearly instructs BHC to gradually move its rentals towards market levels. The prevailing below-market rentals, he says negate the shareholders efforts and policy in promoting home-ownership as it results in many people preferring to rent than to buy due to monthly rentals being lower than mortgage monthly payments. Mr Letshwiti states that during the year under review, BHC in partnership with government concluded a major task of infrastructure development of Block 7 in Gaborone at a cost of P118.9 million shar...