38 more steel, cement vouchers distributed in Region Five

Thirty-eight more steel and cement vouchers were distributed in Region Five on Friday to cushion the construction costs for homebuilders.

The vouchers, valued $225,000 each, were presented by Minister of Housing and Water, Collin Croal and Minister within the Ministry of Housing and Water, Susan Rodrigues, at the ministry’s ‘Dream Realised’ housing drive at Bath Community Centre Ground.

Through the programme, homebuilders constructing homes costing $6 million or less will be provided with the steel needed and one sling of cement for the construction of the foundation.

Homebuilders spending $6 to $25 million will be given two slings of cement.

For Otesha Wade, a beneficiary, the voucher means since it provides her with the chance to build a home for her daughter.

Wade, who was allocated a house lot at Experiment housing area, said, “As a mother, you want to set certain things in life for your children. To be able to, later in life, have a home that she can call her own is a blessing.”

She added, “I am very elated to receive this voucher. It is a stepping stone to me. I am now going and start works to build my home. It is a dream come true for me.”

Overwhelmed, Pulrashtie Dhannabowling said that her husband will be happy for the financial support, which will allow them to construct their own home.

Dhannabowling, who presently lives in a family home with her husband, explained that her husband is unable to work due to an accident.

She added, “My husband cannot work anymore to build the house. So, I had to do this. This was the only alternative. I am thankful to the government. This is a great help… I feel so happy.”

Beneficiary, Novella Leitch also welcomed the initiative by the government.

“She added, “A lot of us who applied didn’t know where we were going to get this start from. And then, for the government to give us this big start…to know that you can get your foundation done by the government…It is very overwhelming.”

According to Minister Croal, the programme was conceptualised to provide financial assistance to home builders to commence construction on their homes’ foundations.

He added, “It is a voucher that is issued, based on an application process, up to $225,000, depending on the size of your building. In this region, to date, we have disbursed over $40 million for over 161 vouchers for such applicants.”

In September, 62 families from the region received their vouchers.