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The Ministry of Housing for the first time will extend the first home ownership initiative to those living in informal settlements and to those families evicted from informal settlements around the country.

Minister Maciu Nalumisa stated in parliament that since this initiatives inception in 2014, there has been a need to extend this support to families who have been evicted from informal settlements.

Nalumisa says that low income families living in informal settlement, due to affordability constraints, have been unable to access the formal housing market.

He adds the Ministry has proposed creating a First Home Grant Assistance Program to support low-income earners and families evicted from informal settlements across the country.

“This program will be piloted under Category 1, or Tier 1, of the first home ownership initiative and is specifically designed to provide targeted assistance to those most affected by eviction”

Nalumisa says that this pilot program will be piloted in Suva city first due to the density of the informal settlements.

He states that the pilot program will focus on families with combined household incomes of up to $30,000 who are residing in Vunidawa, Nabua Muslim League, and Kilikali settlements, and also those who have been issued with eviction notices.  

Nalumisa adds that more than 600 households have been identified across these settlements. These families, represent some of the most vulnerable in our city.

Member of Parliament Alvick Maharaj questioned the age limit criteria for this project.

“I would like to ask the Minister if there is any age criteria regarding the application of this particular grant, and if the Ministry or Government is looking into removing this particular age criteria, because we have seen that the majority of our people start building their first home after the age of 40.”

Nalumisa responded by saying that there is no age limit for this assistance and as long as the applicant can produce and confirm to the Ministry of Housing that they have a registered title or a building on registered land, they are eligible to purchase or construct their first home using this scheme

The Housing Minister states that it is imperative that government provides them with a structured pathway to secure housing for all Fijians.  

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