A total of 25 squatting areas in Region Six will be regularized, and the Government will also be issuing leases to the persons who have been occupying co-op lands in the Region.

During an outreach in the Berbice area on Friday, President Irfaan Ali said a number of interventions will be made for the housing sector in the Region, specifically to ensure that persons get proper documentation for lands that they have been occupying for years.

“In terms of informal settlements, we will be regularizing 25 such settlements, which would result in the regularization of almost 2,000 house lots. These areas include Nigg, Belvadere and Hamsphire,” the President noted.

He also announced that 70 families of No. 43 village, Corentyne, who have been living on private land for decades, will receive titles for the land as the Government moves to purchase the land for the occupants. He said the Government will cover the associated and acquisition costs of the land.

Further, the President said there are a number of Co-operative societies in the Region Six area that have become defunct, with hundreds of acres of lands that persons have been occupying without leases

The Government will now be taking steps to vest the leases in the occupants’ name.

“But that comes not without challenge, the AG will tell that almost on a weekly basis, there is a legal filing, there are controversies and challenges to land ownership and one of the effects of those challenges, is that it delays the block surveys and the registration of those block surveys,” the President noted.

A special team will be set up to conduct occupation survey with the inclusion of communities themselves and grant leases from the master lease, which will bring the leases in line with lawful land occupation.

Further, he said housing needs have been expanding in the Region, with an additional 3,100 new applications from the Region alone. He noted that government will now be moving to acquire new lands in the region to meet those new demands.

“Therefore, the Central Housing and Planning Authority, will be looking towards of the acquisition of lands in new areas such as Springlands, No. 77, Hogsty, and looking at opportunities to further expand Moleson Creek area,” the President stated.

The Housing Ministry has also received a number of commercial business proposals in the region that are actively being considered.

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