THE Central Hosing and Planning Authority (CH&PA) is focusing specifically on Guyanese who have not yet received a house lot.

The huge demand for house lots has been noticed by the managers and Chief Executive Officer of the CH&PA. They are asking that persons who have already received a house lot desist from trying to gain another.

A recent study by the United Nations Human Settlement Programme (UN Habitat) had highlighted that, in the next four to five years, some 4,000 persons per year will be looking to acquire a house lot.

The agency, in its latest quest, is looking to concentrate fully on applications from persons who are in dire need of house lots to accommodate their families.
Over 25,000 active applications for house lots are recorded to date and, as a result, the CH&PA is working to clear that backlog soonest.

Lands will be developed at Bartica, Amelia’s Ward, Wisroc, Kwakwani, Met-en-meer zorg, La Bonne Intention, Vigilance, Mon Repos, Experiment and Ordnance for allocation.
The allocation of lots will be addressed in a systematic way with emphasis placed on applications that were made before 2015.

According to Saul, stern action will be taken against persons who breach the agency’s “one house lot per person rule”. He pointed out that there were cases where persons who were property owners had been allocated lots. In such cases the lots would be re-possessed.
However, the CH&PA is working along with the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission and the Deeds Registry to track persons who own house lots and are seeking another from the agency.

The agency will also launch its Adequate Urban and Accessibility Programme which will see the construction of 50 core homes as well as the disbursement of 300 home improvement subsidies.

Eligible applicants will benefit once they are within the areas of Georgetown to Grove on the East Bank of Demerara; La Parfaite Harmonie on the West Bank and La Bonnie Intention (LBI) located on East Coast of Demerara.

In an interview on the Department of Public Information (DPI)-produced programme ‘One on one,’ Donell Bess-Bascom, the CH&PA Senior Community Development Officer, noted that the agency was moving ahead smoothly with its work.

She noted that the agency is preparing individual profile and report of each applicant who applied under the project, along with recommendations for the applicant to be selected to benefit from the project based on the criteria laid out.

Bascom also made clear that persons will be prioritised based on the urgency of their need.