CAPE TOWN - The Samora Machel constituency in Namibia has built a shack worth about N$5 000 (about $300) for a Windhoek family of seven which has been living under a rock for 10 years, according to local publication The Namibian.
The Swapo-led constituency funded the project after the publication reported on the family's living conditions last year.
According to local media, Jacobine Beukes (42), her husband and their five children have for the past decade lived in a home made of pieces of rock that act as a wall and roof on one side. It is located on top of a hill.
As the house had no tap, toilet facilities or electricity, the family relied on wood for heat to cook on a traditional three-legged stove made of stones. They lived there until last month when the government, through the constituency office, built them a shack.
They depend on a community tap, which is shared by more than 70 households.
The Samora Machel constituency is home to more than 50 000 households with limited basic services, reports The Namibian.
Some residents said they had saved money through the Shack Dwellers Federation of Namibia since 2007 to buy plots from the council, but these had still not been fully serviced, local media reported.
African News Agency (ANA)