One-room flats not sufficient for families, government reconsiders policy stance

Minister of National Housing, Planning and Infrastructure Mohamed Aslam has declared that the previous administrations policy to provide social housing through one-room flats is not sustainable for families, and has detailed efforts on behalf of the Solih administration to remedy this.

The issue was addressed at a press held at the President's Office on Wednesday. During the conference, Minister Aslam detailed that the previous administration had initiated 20 projects under their policy to provide one-room flats as social housing, in association with government offices, state companies and individual businesses. The initial agreement required developers to sell 50 percent of those flats to the government at a rate of USD 38,000 per flat.

However, Minister Aslam noted that the agreements would only come into effect after the government had provided purchasing guarantees for the flats, which then-president Yameen's administration had failed to do. According to Minister Aslam, these contracts had been signed on 5 November 2017.

Minister Aslam went on to reveal that only a few parties had been operating in accordance to the agreements signed under the previous administration. He also added that while some companies had been in clear violation of the agreements, only seven contracts remained that had not been dissolved as of now. He further highlighted that of these seven contracts, work was currently ongoing on behalf of three contractors; Maldives Airports Company Limited (MACL), Maldives Ports Limited (MPL) and Male' Water and Sewerage Company (MWSC).

Providing further clarification, Minister Aslam revealed that the government could only purchase 36 one-room flats from the three towers currently under development. He also added that the government had decided to purchase those flats and issue them to 34 families with disabled members who had received more than 50 percent in the initial assessment marking eligibility for Hiyaa flats. Alluding to the two remaining flats, Minister Aslam confirmed that they would be issued to two persons registered to Male' City who had applied for one-room flats.

Elaborating on the incumbent Solih administration's vision for social housing, Minister Aslam said that the government would no longer be pursuing the development of one-room flats as social housing in the future, as the government did not believe it was a viable solution for families seeking homes to live in through social housing initiatives.

Minister Aslam also revealed that the previous administration had allocated flats without even reviewing the forms submitted by applicants. He went on to detail how the Solih administration had created the Committee Investigating Public Housing Schemes to ensure that the allocation process was made more transparent, in order to ensure that flats were provided to those most deserving of them.