As part of a drive to address the housing deficit for the youth which is still a major concern in Mozambique, the Ministry of Public Works, Housing and Water Resources (MOPHRH), has signed an agreement with a Chinese company, CITIC Constructions.
The project is to build 35,000 houses for the youth and public officials throughout the country at the total cost of $1.4 billion, APA can report on Wednesday,
The agreement was formalised in Maputo on Wednesday by Mozambique’s
Fund for Housing Development (FFH), under the auspices of MOPHRH, and
CITIC Construções,and it is expected that construction work will begin in June next year in the three regions of the country namely northern, central and southern for a period of five years.
The Minister of Public Works, Housing and Water Resources, Joao Machatine, told reporters shortly after the signing ceremony that the deal represents the culmination of several rounds of negotiations lasting one year between Maputo and Beijing to achieve a model of mutual benefits partnership, “ensuring the provision of housing for Mozambicans as a constitutionally consecrated right.”
“We are witnessing today the conclusion of the agreement between the FFH and CITIC Constructions for the construction of 35.00 low-cost housing for young people and civil servants,” said Machatine, who witnessed the ceremony.
Machatine said that one of the most relevant aspects in the discussions was the need to ensure that house prices were not above the financial capacity of the target audience, given the income of most young people and civil servants.
He appealed to the signatories of the agreement, the FFH, as the representative of the Mozambican Government, and CITIC Construções, to redouble their efforts to materialize the project, which, due to its social impact, is forbidden to fail.
“We can not fail, we will not fail, and we do not accept excuses” he warned.
The Minister of Youth and Sports, Nyeleti Modlane, also present at the event, praised the parties for the agreement, saying that decent housing is an old concern among Mozambican youth.
He ensured that from what he had heard from the discussions of the project, it was assured that the houses in allusion would be affordable for young people.
“It is a very good initiative for Mozambican youth, because young people represent 38 percent of the Mozambican population, most of them cry for a proper and decent housing,” he said.
Faced with demographic growth, according to the Minister, the reality of the lack of housing is even more acute for young people, which is why “solutions to this problem need to be found, looking at the financial capacity and salary cap average of civil servants “.
Liu Xiaoguang, the Economic and Commercial Counselor of the Chinese Embassy in Mozambique, said that the project to build 35,000 social houses is an initiative of both countries to mitigate housing problems and improve the quality of housing. life of Mozambicans.
He added that China is concerned about developing and improving the well-being of the Mozambican people and building social infrastructure is one of the key areas of cooperation between China and Mozambique, a priority set at the highest level by the two governments.
“The construction of roads, bridges and other infrastructures is our priority in Mozambique, in addition to our intervention in the areas of health and education. Chinese companies are a major source of investment in Mozambique and major funders and infrastructure builders. CITIC Constructions that will implement this project is one of the great constructors worldwide “, he said.
Of the total housing, 15 thousand will be built in the south, 10 thousand in the downtown area and the same number in the north, with a cost estimate of $30,000 to $40,000 per house (type 2 and type 3 respectively ) with a phased and long-term payment modality.
CM/as/APA