SA’s Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF), the continent’s largest, has invested R10.5bn in mortgage provider SA Home Loans to boost government workers’ access to housing.The investment will be done by the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) on behalf of the GEPF, according to a statement distributed in Johannesburg on Wednesday.Of the funds, R5bn is earmarked for public servants, R2bn will be allocated to affordable housing for low-income earners, R2bn to help SA Home Loans extend mortgages to other qualifying applicants and R1.5bn rand for affordable housing developers."We can make good financial returns," Dries de Wit, vice-chairman of the GEPF, said at a presentation in Johannesburg. Housing is key to economic development, stimulates the demand for goods and services, and will help grow the economy, he said.In SA, with unemployment at 27%, there have been increased protests over a lack of decent housing, access to finance and the slow pace of land reform since the end of apa...
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