Vice President and General Secretary of the People’s Progressive Party (PPP), Dr Bharrat Jagdeo, recently announced that if the party is elected to serve for another term, the government will provide support to Guyanese to aid in building their homes, making access to home ownership much easier.
He told reporters at Freedom House on Thursday that this will be done through financial and material means, even while the government supports citizens with the Cement and Steel Subsidy Programme.
Under this, Guyanese undertaking home construction receive steel and cement subsidies from the government based on the estimated cost of their homes. Homes with estimated costs of $6 million and below receive steel and one sling of cement, while those building homes between $6 million and $25 million receive two slings of cement.
Now, the government is looking beyond, with the vice president saying that, “[We want to]… support them financially…to build more homes so more Guyanese can own homes. And this is coming from a party that takes its promises seriously.
[This] is not just a gaff session with Norton saying he can build 200,000 homes. It is serious,” he underscored.
This is not the sole focus. The vice president said financial resources will be spent on creating more communities, enhancing existing ones and accelerating the Young Professionals Housing programme, to empower youth with home ownership.
According to Dr Jagdeo, the party also intends to establish police outposts and extend the Safe Country initiative in these communities, thereby making them safer for families. Recreational facilities will also be established, with the vice president noting that playgrounds, washroom facilities and green spaces will be constructed in all these communities.
He said that the government has already procured 100,000 lights, which will be installed in communities nationwide, making these communities much safer.
The PPP GS also said that garbage collection, parking spaces and tackling pollution within these communities will be a priority. “These are the things we want to focus on.” Increasing disposable income will also be examined, with him saying that: “We are going to use the taxation system to give greater allowances [and] deductibles for people who are building homes.“
The PPP/C Administration has already fulfilled its promise in the housing sector, as 50,000 housing lots have been distributed to Guyanese from 2020 to 2025.
To date, 93 new housing areas have been created to address the high demand for housing. These were in communities like Mabaruma, Wales, Good Hope, La Bonne Intention, Two Friends, Lusignan, Non-Pareil, Enterprise, Waterloo, Burma, Experiment, Shieldstown, Blairmont, Palmyra, Moleson Creek, Providence, Glasgow, Amelia’s Ward-Fitz Hope, Yarrowkabra, and Hauraruni, among others.
Additionally, from August 2020, the government invested more than $240 billion in the housing sector, which has bolstered housing infrastructure development.
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