Dear Editor,
On Sunday May 26, 2013, your newspaper published an article entitled, "Dr Guy missed the mark." The story spoke to purported inadequacies in my contribution to the Sectoral Debate on Tuesday, May 21, 2013.
According to the article, my contribution hinged on the provision of some 9,000 houses for low-income earners over a five-year period. 1,800 of these houses are to be completed within the current fiscal year.
While the Ministry of Transport, Works and Housing, in no uncertain terms, facilitates and endorses the provision of shelter solutions for low-income earners, the article neglected the well-articulated thrust of the ministry to pursue the delivery of housing for all Jamaicans.
In fact, in the said presentation, reference was made to housing solutions to be provided this year by a cross section of housing related entities. Let me therefore re-iterate the solutions to be delivered during the fiscal year 2013/14:
o 384 to be directly facilitated by the Housing Ministry
o 307 housing solutions to be developed by the NHT in three schemes
o A further 608 solutions are to be financed through the Trust in at least 5 private developments
o 1,085 to be completed by the Housing Agency of Jamaica (HAJ)
o 1,800 of the 9,000 houses (over a 5 year period) to be delivered this year as a result of a partnership with the Ministry, Food for the Poor, JEEP and the NHT.
o Another 1,156 could come on board as a result of public/private partnership agreements once negotiations are completed this year.
Let me highlight that the 1,800 of which the commentary spoke are only for low-income earners and the indigent. All the other solutions I outlined are for lower-middle to middle-income earners. This therefore nullifies your position that provisions are only being made for low income earners.
Furthermore, as it relates to private sector involvement in the housing sector, several projects highlighted in my presentation stem from public/private partnership agreements. We continue to facilitate and encourage the involvement of private developers as well, as Government cannot do it alone.
On the matter of the Draft National Housing Policy and Implementation Plan, while yet to be sanctioned by Parliament, is currently at stage 5 of 7 — stage 5 being public consultation. Though still in draft form, the ministry is moving ahead to implement some of the policy proposals embodied in the document. Acknowledging that there is a significant housing gap to be filled, I should however point out that with a possible 5,340 solutions to be delivered for this financial year, this figure is substantially higher than the average figure that I spoke of last year that were delivered between 2006 and 2011.
With the ministry still committed to making the policy a reality, it is anticipated that the final document will be presented to Parliament for approval and implementation within the 2014/15 financial year.
The other issue raised in the article was that I did not speak to the land transportation sector. Notwithstanding my involvement in that area of remit for the ministry, the Minister of Transport, Works and Housing, Dr Omar Davies, is equally proficient and capable of speaking on the said matter.
In his May 7 presentation to the Sectoral Debate, Minister Davies spoke to efforts on the part of the ministry to reform the sector. He ably outlined the collective vision of the ministry to address related issues.
Let me fervently state my resolve, and that of this Administration, to vigorously pursue the mandates set out in Vision 2030, especially as it relates to sustainable urban and rural development, which incorporates the provision of housing for all. In that regard, I can say that while not yet there, we are certainly nearing on the mark.
Hon Dr Morais Guy, MP
Minister without Portfolio (Housing)
Ministry of Transport, Works and Housing
We are nearing on the mark
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On Sunday May 26, 2013, your newspaper published an article entitled, "Dr Guy missed the mark." The story spoke to purported inadequacies in my contribution to the Sectoral Debate on Tuesday, May 21, 2013.
According to the article, my contribution hinged on the provision of some 9,000 houses for low-income earners over a five-year period. 1,800 of these houses are to be completed within the current fiscal year.
While the Ministry of Transport, Works and Housing, in no uncertain terms, facilitates and endorses the provision of shelter solutions for low-income earners, the article neglected the well-articulated thrust of the ministry to pursue the delivery of housing for all Jamaicans.
In fact, in the said presentation, reference was made to housing solutions to be provided this year by a cross section of housing related entities. Let me therefore re-iterate the solutions to be delivered during the fiscal year 2013/14:
o 384 to be directly facilitated by the Housing Ministry
o 307 housing solutions to be developed by the NHT in three schemes
o A further 608 solutions are to be financed through the Trust in at least 5 private developments
o 1,085 to be completed by the Housing Agency of Jamaica (HAJ)
o 1,800 of the 9,000 houses (over a 5 year period) to be delivered this year as a result of a partnership with the Ministry, Food for the Poor, JEEP and the NHT.
o Another 1,156 could come on board as a result of public/private partnership agreements once negotiations are completed this year.
Let me highlight that the 1,800 of which the commentary spoke are only for low-income earners and the indigent. All the other solutions I outlined are for lower-middle to middle-income earners. This therefore nullifies your position that provisions are only being made for low income earners.
Furthermore, as it relates to private sector involvement in the housing sector, several projects highlighted in my presentation stem from public/private partnership agreements. We continue to facilitate and encourage the involvement of private developers as well, as Government cannot do it alone.
On the matter of the Draft National Housing Policy and Implementation Plan, while yet to be sanctioned by Parliament, is currently at stage 5 of 7 — stage 5 being public consultation. Though still in draft form, the ministry is moving ahead to implement some of the policy proposals embodied in the document. Acknowledging that there is a significant housing gap to be filled, I should however point out that with a possible 5,340 solutions to be delivered for this financial year, this figure is substantially higher than the average figure that I spoke of last year that were delivered between 2006 and 2011.
With the ministry still committed to making the policy a reality, it is anticipated that the final document will be presented to Parliament for approval and implementation within the 2014/15 financial year.
The other issue raised in the article was that I did not speak to the land transportation sector. Notwithstanding my involvement in that area of remit for the ministry, the Minister of Transport, Works and Housing, Dr Omar Davies, is equally proficient and capable of speaking on the said matter.
In his May 7 presentation to the Sectoral Debate, Minister Davies spoke to efforts on the part of the ministry to reform the sector. He ably outlined the collective vision of the ministry to address related issues.
Let me fervently state my resolve, and that of this Administration, to vigorously pursue the mandates set out in Vision 2030, especially as it relates to sustainable urban and rural development, which incorporates the provision of housing for all. In that regard, I can say that while not yet there, we are certainly nearing on the mark.
Hon Dr Morais Guy, MP
Minister without Portfolio (Housing)
Ministry of Transport, Works and Housing
We are nearing on the mark
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