As the Property Sector Research Colloquium 2025 commenced today at Nelson Mandela University’s Ocean Sciences Campus, the event was immediately framed by a bold call for indigenous African solutions to the continental housing crisis. Zimbabwean property consultant Kura Chihota generated significant pre-event buzz with a passionate statement advocating for community-led financing models.
The Colloquium, themed “A Sustainable and Inclusive Property Market,” serves as a high-level platform for debate between government, academia, and industry leaders. Chihota—a Southern African migrant and leading voice in the sector—challenged the reliance on conventional banking systems in a move that resonated deeply with the conference’s core themes of transformation and inclusivity.
“I am excited as a southern African migrant to contribute what I hope and prayed on to impact the huge housing dilemma our continent suffers,” Chihota wrote on X (formerly Twitter). “Can we indigenously crowdfund resources to build housing without banks creating capital, cashflow and housing opportunity with dignity? Thank you @The_DHS and the @The_PPRA for the space to contribute to raising African solutions for African problems. The property stokvel, properly governed is an opportunity for us all.”
His proposal centres on the “property stokvel”—a formalised version of the traditional collective savings or investment society common across Southern Africa—as a mechanism to create capital and cash flow for housing development with inherent dignity, bypassing prohibitive bank requirements.
The two-day colloquium, running from November 5th, provided the perfect setting for this discussion. The first day’s program featured an official opening by NMU Vice-Chancellor Prof. Sibongile Muthwa, followed by the highly anticipated Keynote Address from the Hon. Minister Thembi Simelane of the Department of Human Settlements (DHS).
Chihota’s ideas fit squarely into the agenda, particularly Session 1, which focused on Transformation and Inclusivity, chaired by Ms. Queendy Gungubele. Later sessions, including Parallel Sessions for Research Presentation and a decisive Panel Discussion on the Future of the Property Sector, provided ample opportunity for his innovative funding concepts to be scrutinised and debated by panellists and academics. The day concluded with the Way Forward and Closing Remarks from PPRA CEO, Ms. Thato Ramaili, reinforcing the need for actionable, home-grown strategies to ensure an equitable property market for all.
