PRESIDENT, Dr Irfaan Ali said he has taken note of requests from vulnerable families in East Ruimveldt for roof improvements, emphasising that the matter will be prioritised with a view of bringing relief to those persons.
President Ali along with several members of his cabinet, engaged residents during a walkabout on Thursday in the Georgetown community.
“…There are some families that raised with us roof improvements. So we’re going to look at those roof improvements, the drainage, the sanitation, and then the recreational facility,” the President said.
Aside from its rapid housing drive, the government has placed emphasis on providing relief for families.
In this year’s national budget, $7.5 billion has been allocated to support home construction and improvements, particularly for vulnerable families.
The programme includes the continuation of the steel-and-cement subsidy for house foundations; assistance for home improvements; support for completion of partially built homes; construction of core homes and funding for hinterland housing initiatives.
Of that amount, $2.5 billion has been earmarked for hinterland housing, which will include both new construction and home-improvement support.
The government has been persistent in its efforts to ensure that every Guyanese citizen has the opportunity to become a home owner. 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 houses 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, thousands of individuals across the country have received vouchers 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.
