500 subsidy houses completed in Lilongwe

Over five hundred houses constructed under the Decent and Affordable Housing (Cement and Malata) Subsidy Programme (DAHSP) in Lilongwe district have been completed, Malawi News Agency (Mana) has learnt.

Lilongwe district rural housing officer, Alex Saidi said in an interview on Friday at M’bwatalika in the district  that the houses have been constructed in all the eighteen constituencies of Lilongwe rural. The first phase of the programme will see construction of 80 houses in each of the constituencies.

Lilongwe Kumachenga and Lilongwe Mapuyu South constituencies respectively have the highest number of houses as each of them has 60 houses constructed so far. Lilongwe Central Constituency has the least, with seven houses constructed.

“Over 800 houses have already been roofed, while about 700 have been plastered,” he said, adding over 600 have been floored.

Saidi observed that some of the challenges such as distribution of building materials to various clusters which accommodate Village Housing Development Groups marred the progress of the programme during its initial stage, have been sorted out.

One of the beneficiaries Telina Sankeni from Mbwatalika Village in area Chief Malili’s area said she is happy that she now has a decent house.