The president, Nana Akufo-Addo will inaugurate the Affordable Housing project at Asokore Mampong in the Ashanti Region tomorrow after it was recently completed and put on sale.
Named after the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, the estate is made up of 1,053 housing units (91 blocks) comprising of 26 shops, 336 one bedroom and 691 two-bedroom units.
All the blocks have been named using the Adinkra symbols to reflect the culture and tradition of the Asante Kingdom.
The project forms part of a comprehensive government’s affordable housing initiative meant to provide accommodation to low and middle income earners in the country.
This is expected to reduce the shortfall in housing and bring relief to the people of Kumasi and its environs.
Construction started in 2006, but was halted in 2009. However, in 2015, the government, through the Ministry of Water Resources, Works and Housing handed the project over to the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) to complete.
Report indicates that the country has more than 1.7 million housing deficit. It is estimated that by 2025, Ghana’s urban population, which has seen a drastic increase in the last three decades, will be about 63 percent of the total national population.
The increase in Ghana’s housing deficit has been attributed to high population growth, urbanization, among other factors. Indeed, the continuous growth in the country’s urban population far outweighs the increasing housing stock in the country.
This has caused government to institute long term effective measures to gradually deal with the country’s housing deficit by enabling low and middle income earners have decent accommodation.
Background
The project was handed over to SSNIT on November 12, 2015 with blocks of flats at different stages of completion ranging from foundation to roofing level.
In 2017, the new Board of Trustees under the Chairmanship of Dr. Kwame Addo Kufuor, took steps to fast-track the completion of the then abandoned project in line with the President’s commitment to provide affordable housing for Ghanaians.
The Board subsequently approved a total amount of GH¢256,972,988.04 million for SSNIT to complete the project within 2 years.
The facility has a centralized water reservoir, centralised biogas sewage treatment system, well laid out tarred roads with streets lights, paved walkways and communal car parks, community Police Station, among others reflecting a modern city.