Over 24,000 house lots delivered, 40 new housing areas in 3 years – Croal

…treated water to hinterland increased to 75%

Three years of governance under the Irfaan Ali-led administration has seen the delivery of over 24,000 house lots to Guyanese, Housing Minister Collin Croal disclosed on Thursday.
Moving closer towards fulfilling its manifesto promise of 50,000 house lots in five years, the Minister revealed, “On the eve of our third anniversary in Government, 24,116 house lots were delivered to date.”
Compared to the APNU/AFC’s delivery of 7,534 lots in its entire five-year term, Croal remarked 1,987 was distributed as a ‘gimmick’ leading up to the 2020 General and Regional Elections.
A breakdown of Government’s distribution reflected 719 in Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam), 5,099 in Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara), 15,010 in Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica), 956 in Region Five (Mahaica-Berbice), 1,254 in Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne), 598 in Region Eight (Potaro-Siparuni) and 471 in Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice).
He pointed out that only three housing areas were developed under the former administration – sections of Peter’s Hall, Prospect and Providence. Drawing contrast, the PPP/C Government has pushed aggressively to develop housing schemes in Onderneeming, Charity, Edinburgh, Cornelia Ida, Meten-Meer-Zorg, Anna Catherina, Stewartville, Great Diamond, Little Diamond, Non Pareil, Enterprise, Hope Cummings Lodge, Lusignan, Good Hope, De Endragt Golden Grove, Le Resouvenir, La Reconnaissance, Blairmont, Shieldstown, Burma, Fort Ordnance, Number 75 Village, Number 76 Village, Lethem, Amelia’s Ward, among several areas, and excludes areas under the 2023 work programme.
“In three years, a minimum of 40 new areas have been developed under the PPP/C tenure,” the Housing Minister added.
During its term thus far, construction commenced on 2,154 houses – and over 1000 have been handed over to new beneficiaries.

Water Access
Looking at the water sector, efforts have been made to improve water quality while expanding coverage to new areas.
In 2020, the coverage of treated water to householders was a mere 52 per cent from Regions Two to Six on the coastland.
Croal updated the House, “Recognising that not only to ensure that we have water reaching to every household, but at a minimum, a better-quality means investment in a number of treatment plants. As a result, by 2025, a minimum of 95 per cent of the population on the coastland, including all new housing areas, will be receiving treated water.”
To expedite potable water access for residents, over $15 billion has been expended to make this a reality. The Housing and Water Ministry has achieved a 97 per cent access to safe water on the coastland and 75 per cent for the hinterland – up from 45 per cent before Government took office.
“Before 2025, we will (have) 100 per cent access to potable water delivery in the hinterland. We have provided more than 35,000 residents across the regions with first-time access.”
Customer service connection stands at 61 per cent as at June 2023. At the ending of 2022, 32 new wells were drilled and 7,684 water leaks were repaired. Deteriorating water treatment plants have also been remedied.
The sector has seen a turnaround since 2020, according to the Minister, when it was facing an operating loss of $1.1 billion, while the employment costs hiked by 153 per cent. Some 5000 customers were denied service connections due to depleted inventory, and over 8000 leaks remained unaddressed.
“We are on a robust metering programme to ensure that we can have a target of 100 per cent metering to our customers. We are close to 60 per cent treated water and counting. Clear focus on delivering promised projects and improving service delivery, emphasis on addressing water losses and increasing metering coverage, these are important tenets of where our resources are going to to ensure that we have a better level of service,” he concluded. (G12)