Private sector's role in housing delivery lauded

Accra, Sept. 3, GNA - Mr Alban S.K. Bagbin, Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing had lauded the private sector for taking up the challenge of meeting the housing needs of Ghanaians through the use of environmentally sound technologies and raw materials.

He said the government had over the years worked with various stakeholders both local and international to develop the best combination of technology, designs, cost-effective and appropriate finance to produce durable and good quality affordable homes for the local market.

Mr Bagbin was speaking at the launch of the Granhill Community Housing Project in Accra on Friday.

The 900-acre community project, which is being undertaken by Global Green Built Ghana Limited with its partners is to construct the first near-zero carbon emission and sustainable real estate development in Ghana.

The project to be located on the south of the Tema-Prampram road in the Greater Accra Region, would supply the Ghanaian community with more than 3,000 high-quality and energy-efficient turnkey units with more units to be incorporated in later stages.

Mr Bagbin said many had argued that it was not possible to have truly affordable houses in the near future and most often, well-meaning private entrepreneurs had taken up the challenge to deliver socially responsible housing only to realize that the development cost of the project eventually made their houses unaffordable.

He said to employ one of the new environmentally sound systems of building to provide affordable housing with all the complementary technologies in water and waste management as well as solar energy, was definitely raising the bar and deserved recognition and commendation.

He said one of the key schemes, which was of interest to government about the Granhill Community project was the innovative rent-to-own scheme to be deployed to ensure low-middle income families could afford to own their homes.

"I understand this is the mechanism through which Global Green Built (GGB) will be delivering its houses to Ghanaians.

"It is clear that ordinary Ghanaians who hitherto have only a choice between an expensive mortgage or cash deposits as high as 30 percent of the value of houses they want to own now have a third and very innovative choice of owing their homes through rent payments" he added.

Mr Bagbin also stated that the GGB had partnered the State Housing Corporation (SHC) for the past one and half years to develop a solution for delivering affordable homes for low-to-medium income families.

He said the government would soon announce the details of the package and assured private developers of government's commitment to support activities.

Mr Andrew Clocanas, Executive Director of GGB, said the vision of the company to undertake the project was to meet the affordable housing needs of Ghana.

He said the company would use sound environmental technologies in the development process to ensure sustainable management of the project.

He said the creation of the Granhill Community Project would be the first of such an integrated society in Ghana and the West African sub-region.