The President in his State of the Nation address on 11 February 2010 announced that the State will set aside 6 250 hectares of well-located, public-owned land for human settlements development. With the HDA’s key role being the identification, acquisition, holding, development and release of state-owned land, this pronouncement falls squarely on the Agency’s shoulders. To date the HDA has identified 90 state-owned properties totalling over 33 000 hectares currently under the custodianship of the departments of Public Works and Rural Development and Land Reform for release for human settlement. In order to overcome the challenges characterising current state release procedures, which are complex and inefficient, the Agency has also developed a framework that proposes a seamless and efficient procedure for the release of state-owned land for human settlement development thereby ensuring predictability. The framework will enable the HDA to prepare the land and ensure the reservation of land for human settlements. The release of land may take various forms and need not be formal land transfer.
