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Local Government and Housing Deputy Minister Danny Chingimbu has called on the private sector, financial institutions and other development partners to partner with government to construct affordable housing units in the country.
Speaking at the launch of Lafarge Zambia Demonstration House for an alternative construction technology, Mr. Chingimbu said that in 2010, it was estimated that Zambia had a deficit of more than 1.5 million housing units.
He said it was projected that by 2030 Zambia would have a deficit of about three million housing units hence the need to construct more houses.
Mr Chingimbu noted that the construction industry is key in promoting government’s role of sustainable socio-economic development and reducing poverty in the country, including inadequate access to housing.
He commended Lafarge Zambia for promoting alternative construction technologies in Zambia.
And Lafarge Zambia Chief Executive Officer Emmanuel Rigaux said the challenge that the country was facing was how to build housing units in a cost effective manner.
Mr. Rigaux said it is for this reason that his company was promoting alternative technologies of how to construct cost effective housing units.
He said the walls of the house his company was launching were built using expanded polystyrene systems.
Mr. Rigaux said the technology allows for an improved thermal insulation which is used to reduce energy consumption related to heating and cooling in the building.
Meanwhile Finish Ambassador to Zambia Timo Olkkonen in a speech read on his behalf by Charge` d`Affaires a.i. Maurice Starckman said inland has been supporting the reforms needed to enable private sector development in Zambia for years though the two sectoral programmes of the government, the Private Sector Development Reforms Programme (PSDRP) and the Financial Sector Development Plan (FSDP).
Mr. Starckman said the two programmes are coming to an end this year but his country will continue the funding of the partnership between the government of Zambia and the United Nations in supporting private sector development and job creation in the building construction sector through the Zambia Green Jobs programme.
