The Minister for Local Government, Housing, Urban Development & Environment, Colonel Samuela Saumatua launched the National Housing Policy at Holiday Inn this morning.
The ministry has worked toward the formulation of this policy within the prescribed timeline.
Colonel Saumatua said the policy was designed to bring forth the true potential of the sector, which was to provide affordable and decent housing for all communities.
It is intended to address the piece-meal approach in various housing sectors with regards to housing services.
“It is an important policy document that will provide a clear strategic direction to the Government to ensure that recommended legal, administrative, institutional and capacity building, structural changes in the housing sector are made to facilitate the provisions of affordable and decent shelter for the people of Fiji,” Colonel Saumatua said.
The policy will also contribute towards the People’s Charter, Roadmap for Democracy and Sustainable Socio Economic Development 2009-2014 and Fiji’s achievements on Millennium Development Goals, Goal 7, Target 11 on the national development priority of alleviation of poverty.
Colonel Saumatua stressed the formulation of the policy was essential.
“The formulation of a National Housing Policy is necessary given the emergence of the challenges and issues of public and social, informal, village housing & cross cutting issues, which if left unattended could only grow in magnitude,” he said.
Fifty-four stakeholders were widely consulted and their views were incorporated in the policy during the formulation.
The United Nations Human Settlement programme at the request of the Government also supported the process.
The minister hopes that all stakeholders will continue to work in a collaborative manner in facilitating and implementing the recommended strategies to assist all communities to easily access affordable and decent homes.
Housing Authority chairman Colonel Mosese Tikoitoga believes this policy will bring together all stakeholders to provide better and affordable houses for the people of Fiji.
“Prior to this policy, there was no such thing that could tie all the housing stakeholders together. Now we can look forward to a more strategic way of looking at housing. This will tie all the building industries, hardware companies, government ministries and non-governmental organizations on what type of housing we can build for our people,” Colonel Tikoitoga said.
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