As the country concludes Human Rights Month today, the provincial government outlined its plans to prioritise low-cost houses for people living with disabilities, in collaboration with the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC).
Human Settlements MEC Bonginkosi Madikizela said his department was passionate about assisting the most deserving, especially the elderly and people living with disabilities.
He said: “It is high time we formalise a working relationship and structure a plan we must follow to assist people with disabilities.”
Madikizela said he believed the partnership would play a huge role to assist the needy and vulnerable.
Social Development MEC Albert Fritz said his department would be consulting all 245 funded non-profit organisations (NPOs) working with people with disabilities to help identify those in need.
Fritz said he observed first-hand the increased need for housing opportunities for disabled people and R3 million had already been set aside for the 2017/18 financial year for a comprehensive sectoral engagement process with the NPOs.
He said his department’s role did not end once a family living with a disabled person found a home, but it continued to help however possible.
“A recent case was in Mfuleni, where a 10-year-old autistic boy lives with and is cared for by a single mother.
‘‘The mother is not able to work due to the high care needs of her child.
"The landlords she rents from have evicted her based on the fact that the child is considered a nuisance. There are many families in this situation,” said Fritz.
He said in other cases, not having a proper formal dwelling had health and safety risks.
Fritz’s department knows of cases of disabled children living in informal settlements being attacked by rats due to their immobility from a physical disability.
He said people with disability were at greater risk when there was a fire in an informal settlement, like the recent one in Imizamo Yethu.
SAHRC chairperson Bongani Majola congratulated the two departments on their efforts to work with partners to retain people’s dignity.
“We are dealing with many cases where people are living in unacceptable conditions in the society.
‘‘This initiative and collaboration is greatly welcomed. This is a great example that should be adopted by other provinces,” said Majola.