Minister of Construction, Housing and Infrastructure Dr Abdulla Muththalib has stated that the Government aims to develop 5,000 affordable housing units through public-private partnership arrangements.

Responding to a question at a press briefing held on Wednesday, the Minister said the initiative falls under the Government’s “Housing for All” policy, which is intended to expand access to housing and ensure that suitable accommodation is available for all segments of society.

Minister Dr Muththalib noted that the first phase of the programme was launched last week with the announcement of a project to develop 1,000 housing units in Hulhumalé Phase III under an “Affordable Home Ownership” model. He explained that the initial project would also serve to assess market demand before expanding the initiative further.

The Minister said the broader objective is to scale the programme to 5,000 housing units once the required land allocations and project arrangements are completed. According to him, increasing the supply of housing through such projects would also contribute to addressing the issue of rising rental prices in the Malé region.

The initiative forms part of efforts by the Government to provide long-term solutions to housing challenges. Under the “Housing for All” scheme, the Government will allocate 15,000 plots of land and 7,900 flats.