The Ministry of Urban and Rural Development says the Rent Control Bill is still undergoing a refinement process.
The bill, which was first introduced in 2017 and due for parliamentary approval this year will amongst other things, enable the operalisation of the Rent Control Board as well as the regulation of rent control measures.
“We have a draft bill but it is still undergoing a refinement process, the ministry has engaged a team of experts to assist in this process, and we are also getting legal advice from the office of the attorney general to ensure a fine balance between the constitutional provisions on the right to property and other challenges that are pursuing to address through the proposed law,” Minister of Urban and Rural Development Erastus Uutoni said.
The minister requested patience with regards to the finalising of the proposed regulations.
“The team of experts are busy scrutinizing the draft bill which in due time is expected to be presented to relevant structures before it is table in this August House. I wish to report that progress is evident from us as a Ministry responsible, I thus request for a little more patient from the House and the Nation at large to allow us time to have it right,” Uutoni said in response to a parliamentary inquiry.
According to research data from Simonis Storm, on average, monthly rent across Namibia has surged by 191% from January 2002 to March 2023, nearly tripling over two decades.
The research firm, also revealed that houses with more than three bedrooms experienced the highest rent increases, averaging 11.3% per year over the past two decades.
Single-bedroom houses saw the second-largest annual increase in rent at 6.8%, outpacing two-bedroom (6.4%) and three-bedroom (6.3%) homes.
