Minister of Works and Housing, Samuel Atta Akyea, has disclosed that over 10 million Ghanaians do not have access to safe and decent homes.The startling statistic indicate that a staggering 1/3 of the 30 million Ghanaians have serious challenges with accommodation.
He stated that the housing deficit currently is estimated in excess of two million units, which if extrapolated by Ghana’s cultural set-up of a household made up of five individuals, shows millions of Ghanaians do not live in secured dwellings.
Mr. Atta Akyea disclosed these in Parliament when he responded to Parliamentary questions that stood in the name of the member for South Dayi, Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor. The Minister stated that further statistics indicate 60 percent of Ghana’s urban population will need some form of government intervention to support them get access to safe, secured and affordable shelter.
35 percent, he said, will not be able to access housing even with government subsidy.This leaves only 5 percent of the population that are able to support themselves in accessing housing.“It is against this background that the Affordable Housing Project was initiated in 2006 with the objective of providing accommodation for the low to middle income workers of the country.”
“The initial project objective was to provide 100,000 units over a five- year period, through direct government intervention and in partnership with the private sector,” he stated.Mr. Atta Akyea lamented that the projects, which started so well and reached various stages of completion in 2009 stopped due to lack of adequate funding from the national budget.According to him, 3,300 housing units have so far been delivered through some funding initiatives.
He disclosed that the Ministry is considering available options to make the low-cost housing project a success, including a mortgage regime.The government, he said, is keen to deliver one million housing units for the medium to long term across the sixteen regions.He explained that projects in the Housing Sub-Sector are capital-intensive and cover important physical and social infrastructure facilities for the development of the economy.
“As a developing economy and an emerging market that is seeking to industrialize and expand its agenda for growth, increased access to safe, secure, adequate and affordable housing has become critical to the development of the country.”
“It is therefore the Ministry’s priority programme to ensure that all Ghanaians irrespective of their location have access to safe, secure, adequate and affordable housing as spelt out in the sectors medium-term strategy,” he stated.He argued that as a developing economy and an emerging market seeking to industrialize and expand its growth agenda, increasing access to secure and adequate affordable housing is critical to the development of the country.
