Through the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA), the Ministry of Housing and Water has reopened applications for Core Home Support and Home Improvement Subsidies, under the Adequate Housing and Urban Accessibility Programme (AHUAP).
The call for applications was announced during a press briefing on Friday, at the Ministry’s sub-office, 237 Camp Street, Georgetown.
Attending were Minister of Housing and Water, Collin Croal; Minister within the Ministry of Housing and Water, Susan Rodrigues; Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Mr. Andre Ally; Chief Executive Officer of the Central Housing and Planning Authority, Mr. Sherwyn Greaves, and other officials of the agency.
Minister Croal, stated that the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) funded programme, is intended to improve the lives of low-income Guyanese in urban and peri-urban Georgetown, through better access to housing and basic infrastructure.
“The interventions that are being made are intended to target the poor and the vulnerable. This is timely, as it is also part of the means of reducing the incidence of housing instability that challenges many of our communities,” the Minister said.
He further stated that inadequate housing is also linked to homelessness, abuse, setbacks in educational development and school drop-outs. Minister Rodrigues shared similar sentiments, as she stated that the Ministry is not only focused on the distribution of house lots but also promoting homeownership, as Government remains committed to developing sustainable low-income housing solutions.
The budget for the two aspects of the project is US$ 10 million i.e. US$ 5 million for the Home Improvement Subsidies and $US$ 5 million for Core Home Support.
The Home Improvement Subsidies will be a $500,000 grant in the form of construction materials for repairs to walls, floors, electrical works and sanitation improvements and other non-cosmetic improvements that are consistent with the programme’s objectives.
Chief Executive Officer of CH&PA Mr. Sherwyn Greaves, noted that some 2,000 Home Improvement Subsidies have been earmarked under the programme. During the first leg of the programme, 236 subsidies have been approved for 118 residents in Sophia, Georgetown and 118 Parfaite Harmonie residents, leaving room for an additional 1,764 eligible applicants to now benefit.
Through the Core Home Support initiative, 250 core homes are expected to be built. One hundred applications have so far been approved and contracts recently signed for the construction of fifty (50) of these homes. The core homes will be no less than 400 square feet single-family homes with concrete blocks for outer walls and floors, basic doors, windows, electrical wiring, water connections etc. The homes are designed to meet basic standards that a family can move into and affordably expand over time.
Applications are open from November 5, 2021 to February 7, 2022. All beneficiaries must be individuals in vulnerable households, living in structures considered to not be habitable. These are also persons who possess ownership of the said property. The application forms are available free of cost at the CH&PA Headquarters, 41 Brickdam and United Nations Place, Stabroek, Georgetown; sub-office 237 Camp Street, Georgetown (next to St. Margaret’s Primary School); Regional Housing Office at Vreed-en-Hoop, Region Three, all local authorities within the project boundaries and online at www.chpa.gov.gy.
All applications, along with the relevant documents, can only be returned to the sub-office 237 Camp Street, Georgetown.
The applications for the programme were previously opened from November 2018 to February 2019. During this time, the agency recorded a poor response and applications received did not satisfy the requirement.
This time, a more robust strategy has been employed and the project boundary has also been expanded to capture more vulnerable areas. The boundaries previously encompassed communities from Georgetown to Grove on the East Bank of Demerara, up to La Bonne Intention on the East Coast of Demerara and Westminster, Onderneeming, Recht-Door-Zee, Lust en Rust, and Parfaite Harmonie Phase II on the West Bank of Demerara.
The new margin will see an additional nineteen (19) communities on the East Coast of Demerara benefiting, stretching all the way to Haslington.
