Five low-income individuals on the East Bank of Demerara are the latest recipients of Core Homes under the Adequate Housing and Urban Accessibility Programme (AHUAP), a Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA) announced yesterday.
AHUAP is funded by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).
According to the release, the homes were handed over by the Minister of Housing and Water, Collin Croal; Minister within the Ministry of Housing and Water, Susan Rodrigues; and CH&PA Deputy Director of Community Development, Donell Bess-Bascom, and team.
Arissa Richmond, a mother of five, was moved to tears as she expressed her relief after moving from place to place for fourteen years.
“Now there’s no more moving for me because I have my own home […] no rent, just light bill, nobody to tell you anything, you go can come as you like, you feel comfortable in your own home,” she asserted. Richmond and her children are excited to settle into their newly built Core Home.
Debra Best, who uses a walker for mobility, stated that she previously rented and is now happy to have a place to call her own. “I was renting a place and it was deplorable. Then the people told me that I had to leave and I’m now presently at my grandson’s home,” she explained. Special rails have been installed in her new home to enhance her accessibility.
Croal, who made brief remarks at the event, emphasised the importance of addressing the needs of vulnerable populations through the Ministry’s national housing programme and AHUAP. “This is fulfilling one aspect of what we do, catering to a vulnerable segment of our population. Allocating low-income house lots, is one aspect and this project is another.”
He informed that over $1 billion is being invested on the East Bank of Demerara through the AHUAP for Core Homes, the Home Improvement Subsidy, and other programme components. An additional 80 homes for the EBD are currently at the procurement stage.
Meanwhile, Rodrigues said that some 121 Core Homes have been handed over since 2020, including the homes handed over yesterday. All beneficiaries were selected for the programme and applications are closed. She added that through the Home Improvement Subsidy Initiative, 900 beneficiaries were selected and 600 were disbursed. The subsidies, increased from $500,000 to $750,000, help individuals with deplorable homes acquire building materials. Under the Core Home Support initiative, a total of 323 beneficiaries have been selected.
Each home costs approximately $5 million, the release added.
