President pledges modern, affordable houses for all

22 Mar, 2023 - 15:03 0 Views
President pledges modern, affordable houses for all President Mnangagwa after commissioning the FBC Building Society Fontaine Ridge Housing Project

The Sunday News

Vusumuzi Dube, Online News Editor

PRESIDENT Mnangagwa has reiterated that his administration remains committed to availing modern and affordable housing to its citizenry as part of the national development matrix and quest to improve the standard of living.

President Mnangagwa was speaking at the launch of the FBC Building Society Fontaine Ridge Housing Project in Kuwadzana, Harare today (Wednesday). He commended the quality of workmanship, design and layout of the project, noting that the Fontaine Ridge project is set to avail housing units to the market which will contribute towards closing the national housing gap.

The President challenged the public and private sectors to scale up collaborations towards establishing vibrant, renewed and integrated systems that facilitate the speedy implementation of housing development projects.

“My Government is, thus, determined to create an enabling environment to give impetus to the accelerated development of housing, water, sanitation, modern road networks and other social amenities across the country. In this regard, I call upon more real estate developers to partner the responsible Ministries, Departments and Agencies of Government, taking advantage of the various opportunities that are being availed in our quest to roll out affordable and quality housing solutions for our citizenry,” said President Mnangagwa.

He further revealed that the Ministry of National Housing and Social Amenities has a target to deliver on the housing sector targets set in the National Development Strategy, the achievement of which will be realised through partnerships.

“I challenge FBC Building Society and the Ministry of National Housing and Social Amenities to leverage such a track record to expand their service and product portfolios through conceptualising and developing targeted – customised housing solutions. In doing so, housing developments, particularly for Zimbabweans in the diaspora, farmers, civil servants, small-scale and medium enterprises as well artisanal miners, among other prospective clients, must be expanded,” said the President.

He called on players in the real estate sector to adhere to the principles of good governance, transparency and accountability to enhance credibility of the sector and increased participation of home seekers.

President Mnangagwa further reiterated the philosophy, Nyika inovakwa nevene vayo, ilizwe lakhiwa ngabanikazi balo”, where he noted that everyone has an obligation to play a part in building the nation.

“The built environment is a product, creation and construct of our own purpose and interaction. It is an expression of our rich heritage, value consensus, collective aspirations as well as our advancement. Hence, individually and collectively, we must continue taking up the responsibility to clean and beautify our homes, work and recreational spaces.

“The commitment by FBC Building Society to mainstream the ‘Green Buildings Concept’ provided under Sustainable Development Goal Number 11 on Sustainable Cities and Communities is commendable. I challenge stakeholders in the broader built environment sector to integrate climate change adaptation and resilience in present and future construction works, as well as aspects of the National Beautification programme,” said the President.

He said the re-alignment of service provision standards such as the servicing of land before any housing development, must continue to be prioritized, with laws and statutes governing rural and urban spatial planning as well as development control being upheld all the time.

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