In implementation of the directives of His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, to allocate an additional budget for financing solutions and alternative options for applicants for housing units in 2004 and prior, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Planning has begun distributing alternative housing services to beneficiary citizens.
Amna bint Ahmed Al Romaihi, Minister of Housing and Urban Planning, said that the ministry began today to allocate a batch of the housing units in East Sitra for beneficiaries of the first option for alternative solutions, which includes allocating a housing unit in addition to financing construction by BD40,000 through Tasheel (facilitation) Programme.
She added that the second option is to provide a residential apartment for the beneficiaries with a financial grant of BD 3,000 and a two-year exemption from maintenance fees for shared areas through the beneficiaries union.
The minister also said that the ministry will have a third option which is to offer beneficiaries the maximum financing provided through Tasheel, which is BD 70,000, in addition to a BD 10,000 grant.
Al Romaihi said that the total number of vouchers allocated for this option in various governorates will contribute to meeting a group of existing and prior housing requests, noting that the allocation of this batch of East Sitra units will be followed by the allocation of units in other projects in different governorates, within the plan to deliver the units option and construction financing amount to the beneficiaries.
The minister said that the ministry will continue to disburse housing allowances to citizens benefiting from East Sitra city units exclusively through the Tasheel programme for two years. The ministry will also pay for the fees for issuing building permits. She confirmed the completion of providing units in East Sitra with infrastructure services. She said this contributes to facilitating completion of the construction of housing units by the beneficiaries.
Al Romaihi said that the timeline for delivering alternative housing services to citizens comes after completing the stage of surveying citizens’ choices and registering their requests in terms of the announced housing options. She added that the delivery of alternative housing options includes all beneficiaries through a schedule of multiple instalments.
The minister said that the distribution of alternative housing options will significantly contribute to reducing the number of pending housing applications.
BNA(R)
