Homes joy for more than 15,000 Bahraini families

MANAMA: A total of 15,890 Bahraini families have been provided with homes from January 2019 to date, it has been revealed.

This is 63.5 per cent of the government’s target of providing homes for 25,000 families under the four-year 2019-2022 Government Action Plan, Housing Minister Bassem Al Hamer told MPs.

Addressing Parliament during its weekly session yesterday, he said 7,990 homes were provided directly by the ministry while 7,900 homes were provided through Mazaya, a social housing finance Scheme in partnership with the private sector.

For around seven hours the MPs debated the findings of a report into alleged irregularities at the Housing Ministry.

“We are currently working on five new housing towns,” said Mr Al Hamer, who became Housing Minister in 2011.

“Since the 1960s, the government has provided 150,000 homes worth BD4 billion financed from the budget besides other financing from the Gulf Development Fund on eight towns.

“Currently there are 40,000 people working non-stop to get homes built.

“People on the waiting list for homes are those from 1997 to 1999, constituting just seven per cent of those remaining from the 1990s,” he said.

The ministry was also working on a prototype home at one of the new projects which could set new standards.

The prototype home will be presented to MPs for assessment; it’s an upgrade to the current design.

Source: https://www.gdnonline.com/Details/944085/Homes-joy-for-more-than-15,000-Bahraini-families