Provide affordable houses for the people - Collins Dauda
The Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing, Alhaji Collins Dauda, has challenged the Ghana Real Estate Developers Association (GREDA), which is celebrating its 25th anniversary, to lead in the provision of affordable housing for the people, since adequate housing impacts directly on a country's development.
Advertisement
"Housing and homeownership are key to the overall development of any nation as it impacts on the social, health and economic status of its citizens", he said.
The housing minister, who was speaking at the opening ceremony of a two-day housing exhibition organised by GREDA as part of its silver jubilee celebration, commended the association for its resilience in the face of all the challenges confronting the industry.
"The housing sector will be able to provide about two million jobs if the country's housing problems are properly tackled. My ministry is asking GREDA to submit proposals on how it wants to partner government to bridge the huge housing deficit which is estimated at 1.7 million".
Alhaji Dauda said the government was pursuing measures to eliminate the constraints militating against a reduction in the housing deficit, such as high cost and access to land with good title, inadequate long-term finance and heavy reliance on expensive, imported building materials.
For his part, the First Vice-President of GREDA, Mr Patrick Ebo Bonful, said the theme chosen for the anniversary, "Twenty-five years of leadership and Innovative partnerships for sustainable housing," reflected how GREDA members were forging closer connections in the country, sharing expertise and technology to improve efficiency and boost productivity.
He also said: "It is our expectation that the celebration of this milestone will herald the beginning of a positive change in the circumstances of developers. This is by no means guaranteed without industry and hard work from individual members".
Mr Bonful asked members to take a critical look at the quality of their work with the view to improving same and encouraged them to engage qualified technicians and engineers to work on their projects.
"You will agree with me that lately, questions are being asked in respect of the quality of work done by some industry players, the lack of innovation and high cost of property developed by us," Mr Bonful said.
"We can say with some satisfaction that GREDA has contributed immensely to housing delivery in Ghana in the last 25 years. Let us collectively resolve to do more as we play a very important role in the socio-economic well-being of our people," Mr Bonful said.