Prince Salman visits housing ministry

His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al-Khalifa, Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Prime Minister, today visited the Ministry of Housing, marking the start of a series of visits to a number of government ministries. During the visit, His Royal Highness emphasised the importance of continuing to develop a structured long-term housing policy, which will encourage private sector partnerships, thereby contributing to the successful realisation of housing projects without creating additional burdens on the state or citizens. His Royal Highness added that the purpose of these housing projects are important to the social policy of Bahrain. He underlined that all citizens throughout the kingdom are equally entitled to housing as with any public service provided by the state. During a tour of the ministry, including a number of directorates and departments, His Royal Highness was briefed on current procedures and services provided. He subsequently commended the efforts of all staff within the ministry, noting their determination and dedication in fulfilling their duties in meeting the needs of the public. His Royal Highness also met a number of citizens visiting the ministry and listened to their views on the services provided. In doing so, His Royal Highness emphasised the importance of receiving and acting on the feedback of customers as an assessment of performance within ministry, in line with the reforms led by His Majesty King Hamad that place importance on transparency and improving the services provided to Bahraini citizens. His Royal Highness said the efforts of the government, led by His Royal Highness Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa the Prime Minister, sought to meet the requirements of the citizens of Bahrain and have made significant achievements, notably due to the commitment by His Royal Highness the Prime Minister. His Royal Highness further added that he looked forward to working with His Royal Highness the Prime Minister and the government to provide all the neceassary support. His Royal Highness said he will focus on working in coordination with ministries across the government for the effective planning and implementation of projects, whilst taking into consideration feedback from the general public. His Royal Highness,then, received a briefing from the Minister of Housing, Bassem Yaqoub Al Hamer, on the current projects and targets for the ministry. The minister said there were 55,000 outstanding requests for housing, of which 45% have exceeded the five year waiting limit. The outstanding requests will be met by projects which are due to be implemented over the next five years at a cost of BD2.3 billion; which is a big challenge when compared to the 100,000 housing units that have been built since the 1960s at the cost of BD 3bn. The minister thanked His Royal Highness for visiting the Ministry of Housing, noting that it provided motivation for the staff, and thanked him for his follow up on the details of the work of the ministry along with His Royal Highness’ valuable remarks that will contribute to further improvements in services.