NHC rolls out big Dodoma housing plan

ALVAR MWAKYUSA

NHC Director General, Mr Nehemiah Mchechu

CIVIL servants and employees from the private sector have been assured of adequate accommodation in the designated administrative city of Dodoma, as the National Housing Corporation (NHC) seeks to raise 60bn/- to put up between 300 and 500 houses in the capital.

Even with the envisaged development in Dodoma, the corporation maintained that it will continue undertaking projects in Dar es Salaam, given its strategic location, commercial influence and the fact that 70 per cent of NHC’s property are in the commercial city.

NHC Director General, Mr Nehemiah Mchechu, said the corporation has so far acquired 236 acres of land at Iyumbu area,

adjacent to the University of Dodoma (UDOM), where it plans to establish a satellite centre. “In the first phase, we plan to build between 300 and 500 houses in the next twelve months. Apart from Iyumba we also have plots in Chamwino, Bahi and Chemba,” Mr Mchechu told a press conference in Dar es Salaam yesterday.

According to the DG, the stateowned real estate developer aims to raise 15bn/- from the sale of 97 units at Medeli Housing Estate in Dodoma and an additional 30bn/- from the sale of plots at its satellite centres across the country such as Safari City in Arusha and Kawe in Dar es Salaam.

“We have a total of 153 units at Medeli, out of which 97 are leased while the rest were sold out. Tenants occupying the 97 units will be given first priority in the sale but if they fail the houses will be sold to other Tanzanians,” he stated.

The NHC as well seeks to raise 15bn/- in outstanding rent fee by tenants in Dar es Salaam, while the funds will be channelled to the housing projects in Dodoma, he explained.

Mr Mchechu mentioned other possible sources of financing as loans from financial institutions and engagement of local and foreign investors. The construction industry currently contributes 24 per cent to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), but Mr Mchechu was optimistic that the development of the designated capital will boost the industry’s contribution to 30 per cent.

“More still, as the country faces a shortage of 3.5 million housing units, with the demand increasing at an average of 200,000 units per annum, we hope the housing projects in Dodoma will help to ease the shortage,” Mr Mchechu noted.

The NHC boss was as well positive that the development of Dodoma will create more jobs, attract new investments, increase government revenues and eventually boost the economy.

President John Magufuli has lately stressed that he will make sure that the long dream of the founding Father of Tanzania, the late Mwalimu Julius Nyerere, of transferring the capital city from Dar es Salaam to Dodoma is fulfilled before 2020.

Since then, the Prime Minister, Mr Kassim Majaliwa, said he will be the first to have his office transferred to Dodoma next month and instructed cabinet ministers to follow suit.