Ghana and Kenya are part of African countries to benefit from a US$15 billion United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) affordable housing project expected to be rolled out soon.
Apart from Africa, some Asia and the Caribbean countries would also benefit from the project.
The UNOPS is working in partnership with Sustainable Housing Solutions (SHS) to roll out the project, which comes under the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations.
The partnership would see UNOPS and SHS delivering 260,000 plus high-quality affordable homes across the selected countries.
“UNOPS and SHS will begin to work on projects this year in Ghana, India, Kenya and the Caribbean to help build more than 260,000 affordable homes,” UNOPS said in a statement.
According to UNOPS, “the project will provide thousands of job opportunities for local communities, and the opportunities include projects in construction and renewable energy sectors.”
Ghana, with an estimated housing deficit of over two million, which is projected to increase to 2.2 million in a few years, will receive US$5 billion to construct about 100,000 affordable houses.
Ghana’s agreement was signed in September 2018 in New York, US, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, which was attended by President Akufo-Addo.
The partnership is the latest step in the UNOPS Social Impact Investing Initiative, which aims to attract financing from the private sector to develop projects in emerging markets.
The agreement aims to utilize proven innovative technology to accelerate large-scale construction projects in some of the world’s most challenging environments.
The concept aims at providing a ‘turn-key solution’ to reduce the current shortfall of tens of millions of decent dwellings.
The new partnership will also explore new opportunities in the renewable market, with UNOPS expected to work with MYRA-SHS Energy, a subsidiary of SHS.
UNOPS Executive Director, Grete Faremo, said: “The Sustainable Development Goals call for new and bold partnerships. We now bring together expertise, ideas and financing from a broad range of partners – including governments, the public sector and also the private sector.”
Director of SHS Holdings, Dr. Allen Zimbler, on his part, stated that “we are proud to partner with UNOPS and work alongside other world-class partners to resolve the significant housing crisis in the developing world and beyond.”
