City’s debtors profile improves significantly

The City of Windhoek is keeping house with the upgrading of gravel roads to tar roads, rural electrification and new debt collection measures.

At a recent City of Windhoek Council meeting, it was stated that the earth works has begun in Windhoek’s Wanaheda extension 7 and 8 with the tarring of14 sections of gravel road. Completion expected by the end of this year for the just over 3km distance of gravel road. The project is done by Maketo Construction Company at a cost of N$15 million.
Another road rehabilitation contract of 25km of already surfaced roads and streets was awarded to Tau Pelel Construction Namibia. The annual resurfacing started in March. The last city council meeting also approved the supply of electricity to four informal settlements at a cost of N$11 million.
Regarding accounts in arrears, City of Windhoek Finance Executive George Esterhuizen said earlier that there will no longer be any grace period for unpaid municipal bills.
He said that 75% of clients who were sent SMS’s regarding overdue accounts paid their bills equaling N$11 million. “Currently 55% of those notified are on 120-days debt collection notice.”
He added that the city does not have the manpower to manually cut services with the exception of some functions such as refuse removal and the municipal ambulance service.
He disclosed that the government institutions’ share of unpaid bills of N$150 million is now down to N$31 million.