Nawbatt announces five-year strategic plan for housing
Guyana Chronicle
February 14, 2007

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THE housing sector will undergo structured improvements to make it a more substantial contributor to poverty reduction.

In the process, the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA) intends to develop a five-year strategic plan that would ensure its continuity as a competent, reliable, customer-oriented and transparent agency for executing its land use and housing mandate, Minister of Housing and Water, Mr. Harry Narine Nawbatt announced Monday.

Speaking during debate on the 2007 National Budget in Parliament, he outlined the development and 2007 to 2011 implementation of a national policy to tackle the expansion of low income housing, the Government Information Agency (GINA) reported.

Nawbatt said mortgage interest rates of five financial institutions have been reduced from 30 per cent to between 5.5 and 7 per cent per annum and he assured the National Assembly that his ministry will continue to work closely with them to enable access to finances by low and moderate income earners.

He said the Letter of Assurance, a sterling example of his ministry’s commitment, is a negotiated agreement between it and the financing institutions that helps prospective home owners acquire mortgages quickly.

However, the ministry is faced with challenges by persons not occupying their lots in housing schemes and repossession of unoccupied ones will follow investigations.

Nawbatt said, in 2006, under the Low Income Settlement Programme, $795M was spent on housing infrastructure and services for about 9,000 house lots in areas including Zeelugt North and Blocks A, B & C in Sophia.

He said similar work was undertaken on 4,700 house lots, in the Low Income Housing Project, at places such as Westminister, Belle West, Plantation Glasgow, Cummings Lodge and Sophia.

Nawbatt said, through the programme administered by the CH&PA, nearly $300M was similarly expended on 10,000 more house lots at Vigilance South, Amelia’s Ward, Vryheid’s Lust and Block II, Enterprise.