Kuwait doing its best to secure houses for citizens

The Public Authority for Housing Welfare is committed to implementation of a "road map," stipulating distribution of 1,200 residential units to citizens within the coming ten years, according to a senior official.
The "road map" has been drawn up on a main basis, adherence to distribution of 12,000 residential units within the coming ten years, said Minister of State for Housing Affairs Yasser Abul in a statement, marking Arab Housing Day that falls Monday.
Minister Abul explained that 21,000 houses, according to the abovementioned plan, will be built in Al-Metlaa, 40,000 in Saad Al-Abdullah South City, 35,000 in Al-Khairan, 52,000 in Nawaf Al-Ahmad City and 52,000 in Al-Sabriyah.
Relevant authorities have signed contracts for construction of buildings and utilities as part of Jaber Al-Ahmad City, Sabah Al-Ahmad City, Al-Sulaibikhat Southwest City, Minister Abul revealed, adding that a contract had been inked for designing Al-Metlaa City.
A sufficient number of land plots has been specialized for building nearly 200,000 residential units, he said, also alluding in this respect to endorsement of amendments to the housing law, due to cooperation between executive and legislative authorities.
This strategy, the "road map," will tackle a lot of issues that have aggravated the housing problem, the minister said, explaining his belief that securing 12,000 units per year will result in decreasing number of housing seekers, thus prices of real-estate plots will drop. Some of the proceeds from commercial, business, industrial and entertainment facilities that will be built at the residential districts will be invested to cover some costs of constructing these residential areas.
Some of the money, from these proceeds, will be shifted to the housing authority budget and invested in future housing ventures, "whereby we will be able to minimize dependence on the State general budget." Minister Abul indicated the approach within the major plan to "develop mechanisms and resources of housing loans and render them compatible with requirements of executing the future plan," also noting desire to enhance cooperation between the private and private sectors for executing such ventures. Furthermore, he indicated that the authorities would seek to offer apartment houses and residential areas, friendly to the environment.
"We all, the workers in the housing field, will spare no effort for implementing this plan that will contribute to realizing social security and development stability for all segments of the society," he pledged, also noting in this respect necessity of cooperation among the the governmental departments, the National Assembly, under guidance of His Highness the Amir and His Highness the Crown Prince.
The State of Kuwait has secured housing for more than 100,000 Kuwaiti families since 1956, the minister said, however he acknowledged that the huge investments in the sector remained short of the faster population growth, estimated at four percent per year, one of the highest in the world. "This means number of Kuwaiti nationals will reach 1.5 million in 2020 and two million in 2030," he forecast.