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Government is advocating for increased utilization of local materials in housing and other infrastructure projects

The government is actively promoting the incorporation of local materials in the construction of housing and other infrastructure projects across the nation.

District Assemblies have been instructed to prioritize the use of indigenous materials in the provision of housing for government employees and infrastructure projects, some of which receive partial funding from the government.

Minister for Works and Housing, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, revealed this directive during an interview on PM Express Business edition with host George Wiafe on Thursday, March 28, 2024.

Minister for Works and Housing, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah disclosed this in an interview on PM Express Business edition with host, George Wiafe on Thursday, March 28, 2024.

The minister stated that “Government has started a District Housing programme and we are going to make sure that local  building materials are used, so that we can bring the cost of these developments down by some 30 percent.”

According to him, this is part of the government’s policy direction to help reduce the cost of these projects and make it affordable for Ghanaians.

According to Mr Nkrumah, the District Housing Programme, would go a long way to deal with the rural urban drift, as well as provide housing for public servants pushed into those areas to work .

Incentives for developers using local materials  and other technologies

“We are also looking at extending incentives to other private developers that are willing to implement government policy,”the Minister added.

The minister also disclosed that developers employing innovative technologies to reduce costs in their projects may qualify for government assistance.

“Government cannot do this alone and therefore there is the need to see how to partner the private sector in the provision of houses and projects in the country.

The Minister added “Government is also pushing a General Housing initiative, where we can attract master developers who can do up to  5,000 housing units, then government will step in with the needed incentives.”

The government is also focusing on revitalizing old housing units for the public sector to address the housing shortfall. Additionally, the Ministry of Works and Housing has established a General Housing Unit to collaborate with the private sector in extending these incentives.

“When you go to these developed countries, there is always the deliberate attempt to bring on board private sector when it comes to the construction of these houses. We need to make the environment more conducive to attract the needed capital to develop the sector,” he said.

Taxing the real estate sector

Kojo Oppong Nkrumah disclosed that he is presently in discussions with the Minister of Finance regarding the structuring of certain taxes to ensure they do not adversely impact developers involved in affordable housing initiatives.

“Why are the projects and some of these buildings so high in Ghana, and one can talk about what goes into it”the minister noted.

“So you realize that the challenge with the cost of these housing is not just about the taxes, but sometimes the technology used,”he said.

“So government is looking at all these things when it comes to pushing for a review of some of these taxes on the sector, which could go a long way to reduce the cost.”

The minister also added that, government is engaging the Ghana Association of Banks on how to reduce cost of credit for these developers.

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