VICE-PRESIDENT Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo announced on Thursday that the government is preparing to launch a nationwide housing support programme that will see poor or low-income families receiving a grant from the state.

During a news conference on Thursday at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre (ACCC), he told reporters that this government-funded programme will assist citizens with home improvement and house construction.

“If they need the help, they will get the help,” the Vice-President assured the public.

Soon, a survey will be conducted in all the regions to gather the necessary data, according to Dr. Jagdeo, who also stated that this should be completed before the passage of the next national budget.

“As soon as we roll the programme out in the budget next year, they will start receiving help,” he said, adding: “We are working at rolling this out in the new budget next year.”

While it may not be the entire housing construction, he said they will assist and for poor families, there will be home improvement grants.

The government has been persistent in its efforts to ensure every Guyanese citizen has the opportunity to become a homeowner. The government inherited a backlog of 75,509 housing applications when it took office in August 2020.

However, this figure did not deter the Dr. Irfaan Ali-led administration from carrying out its ambitious housing plan to deliver 50,000 house lots during its first term in office.

Through deliberate policies, the government exceeded its house-lot target in less than five years by delivering over 50,000 house lots to Guyanese from every income bracket, which stands in sharp contrast to just over 7,000 lots that were distributed by the previous administration during its entire tenure in office.

According to statistics from the Ministry of Housing, 47 per cent of the house lots that were allocated were given to women, while 90 per cent went to low-income families.

Having surpassed its target of delivering 50,000 house lots, the Ministry of Housing is now tasked with building 40,000 homes over the next five years, in keeping with the government’s 2025 Manifesto promise.

The government has also implemented a series of housing programmes to help Guyanese realise their dream of owning a home, such as low-interest rates at the local banks, and providing them with thousands of dollars in steel and cement vouchers.

Under the steel and cement subsidy programme, over 2,000 individuals across the country have received vouchers totalling over $500 million since 2022.

Homebuilders are provided with one sling of cement and the required steel to build the foundation of houses costing $6 million or less.

Those constructing homes valued between $6 million and $25 million are provided with two slings of cement and the necessary steel to complete the foundation.

Another initiative by the government is the Core Home Support initiative that falls under the $5.8 billion Adequate Housing and Urban Accessibility Programme (AHUAP), which targets vulnerable families and provides them with affordable core homes. The other components of this project are the housing subsidy and the construction of community grounds.