OVER one hundred low-income residents of La Parfaite Harmonie, West Bank Demerara, on Sunday signed contracts that will see them benefitting from the construction of core homes and home improvement subsidies. The signing was held by the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA) at the La Parfaite Harmonie Primary School. Housing and Water Minister, Collin Croal; Susan Rodrigues, Minister within The Ministry of Housing and Water, CH&PA Chief Executive Officer , Sherwyn Greaves and Regional Vice-Chairman, Omesh Satyanand were present at the exercise. Minister Croal, in his address, stated that the home improvement subsidies and core homes, which fall under the Adequate Housing and Urban Accessibility Programme (AHUAP), are designed to elevate the living standards of vulnerable groups.

“Our mission at the Ministry of Housing and Water is to increase homeownership across the country and with low-income housing being the highest demand in our system, such programmes are important to our mandate,” Minister Croal stated.
The minister also spoke to some of the ministry’s ongoing development programmes in the region including the drilling of new wells, water service connections and some $900 million in expected road upgrades.
Meanwhile, Minister Rodrigues, in her remarks, elaborated that the AHUAP will not only help to improve housing conditions but also provide employment opportunities.

“Job creation and stimulation of the local economy is integrally part of this programme. These are the soft issues that affect people’s lives and that we’re working on addressing through our housing drive,” said Minister Rodrigues.
Before the signing of the contracts, Head of CH&PA’s Legal Secretariat, Hannifah Jordan, explained the contract terms to beneficiaries. A session for concerns to be addressed was then facilitated by Director of Community Development, Gladwin Charles and Deputy Director, Donell Bess-Bascom and team.
Sunday’s proceeding follows the inking of $163 million in contracts between the CH&PA and the contractors executing the projects. Twenty-five core homes will be built through this phase of the programme and 118 home improvement subsidies will be granted.

The core homes will be no less than 330 square feet single-family homes with concrete blocks for the outer walls and floors, basic doors, windows, electrical wiring and water connections. The homes are designed to meet basic standards that a family can move into and affordably expand over time. On the other hand, the home improvement subsidies will be $500,000 granted in the form of building materials for repairs to walls, floors, electrical works and sanitation improvements, among others.