Research tells us that Cape Town’s backyard shacks originated in the historically ‘Coloured residential areas.
Which takes us to Hanover Park, still a predominantly ‘Coloured’ suburb, some 18 kilometres from the centre of Cape Town?
Built between 1969 and 1994, Hanover Park today has 5920 formal dwellings comprising 3760 rental units and 2160 privately owned homes.
An estimated formal population of 65 000 is supplemented by the 18 900 informal dwellers residing in the house estate.
In Hanover Park, as indeed in all of the settlements in this case study, many backyards host multiple shacks with landlords sharing electricity, water, sanitation and refuse collection with backyard tenants in return for rent.
This arrangement, however, often leads to technical problems, such as illegal and unsafe electricity connections resulting in outages. Solid waste management presents another problem….as does sanitation. In the absence of outside ablution facilities, the backyard dweller is reliant on access to the landlords house where access to toilet facilities is denied, tenants are forced to dispose of sanitation waste in other ways for instances, in some cases waste in plastic bags is placed into storm water, solid waste or sewerage systems leading to blockages and unhealthy situations.
Introduction
The Hanover Park Backyard-dwellers Organisation was found in 2006 by Ricardo Sedres, a young motivational speaker. To look at the interest of the people of the backyard-dwellers and act on behalf of them through lobbying various groups of interest for support and be a mouth piece for the community.
Aim
- To build partnership with Local, Provincial and National Government and Businesses
- To be the voice of the people living in the backyard
- To provide services such as electricity, water and sanitation
- To reduce shacks in the area and provide decent housing
Vision
- To promote friendly relations, based on mutual respect and understanding, between the various groups in the community
- To lobby for land for the backyard-dwellers
Projects:
- Video shoot with backyard-dwellers and the City of Cape Town
- Installation of electrical boxes 150 beneficiaries
- Providing school stationery to the needy of all high and primary schools
- Distribution of clothing to the needy
- Distribution of food parcels
Sponsors:
Partnership:
- Cape Chambers Of Commerce
- InternAfrica.org
- Mustadafin Foundation
- Zakar Fund
- City of Cape Town Housing Sector
- Muslim Hands
- D.A.G.
Chairperson Shahieda Davids 0714312259
Deputy Chairperson Zuraya Suanders 0747513290
Secretary Shafieka Rassouw 0714910473
Deputy Secretary Ayesha Allie 0834379311
Treasurer Shukri Allie 0783264660
Deputy Treasurer 0786127421
PRO Charlene Leukes
