MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica – Prime Minister, Andrew Holness, says that some 315 houses have so far been constructed under the Government’s National Social Housing Programme (NSHP).

“Now, I have handed over more than 260 of these houses. In fact, right now, I think we have about 315 houses that are either handed over, under construction or completed and awaiting handing over,” he said.

The prime minister was addressing the ceremony for the handing over of a three-bedroom unit to Simone Reid in John Reid, St Ann on Thursday (Dec 12).

Reid was one of three beneficiaries in the parish who received houses on the day.

The NSHP was developed to improve the housing condition of the country’s poor and disadvantaged population by providing quality, affordable and sustainable housing.

Reid’s home was constructed a cost of close to $6.4 million, which the prime minister noted was “amazingly low.”

However, he pointed out that the cost of each NSHP unit varies as it is dependent on the terrain on which it is built and the infrastructure that must be put in place.

“So, the cost here, obviously, was moderate because the site is flat and easily accessible, and the infrastructure work that was required was limited, therefore, we came in at this very, very good price,” he said.

Meanwhile, the prime minister said that the Government will be providing more housing solutions for persons in the low income, lower middle income and minimum wage categories.

He noted that the National Housing Trust (NHT) is developing over 40,000 solutions island-wide, the bulk of which will “be targeted at the persons who are lower income, lower middle income and middle income.”

“So, the intention of the NHT, then, is to address the market failure in the private housing market so that we can provide housing now for the barber, the bartender, the hairdresser, the basic school teacher, the mechanic [and] the taxi driver,” he noted.

“I would say that by next year, you’re going to start to see housing coming onto the market that will cater to those income levels. The truth is, it has really been unfair to many of the contributors that they are contributing but there is no housing solution in their price point,” the prime minister pointed out.

– JIS

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