The National Housing and Construction Company (NHCC) Limited will construct 1,400 housing units in its long-term scheme to provide affordable houses for corporate employees in the country.
This followed a tripartite partnership that NHCC signed with Stanbic Properties Limited and Stanbic bank to develop and facilitate Ugandans to access affordable modern housing.
Under the terms of the partnership, which were unveiled on November 30 in Kampala, NHCC will provide land to develop affordable modern housing whereupon Stanbic Properties will handle the direct sales and marketing with Stanbic bank playing the role of financing partner.
Both Stanbic bank and Stanbic Properties are subsidiaries of Stanbic Uganda Holdings Limited (SUHL), under the Standard Bank Group, Africa’s largest commercial bank.
Officials said at least 1,400 tailor-made housing units will be developed, targeting Stanbic bank employees, after which offers will be extended to other corporate entities, public and business community.
Spencer Sabiiti, the chief executive of Stanbic Properties Uganda Limited, said: “Our mission is to get all actors in the property space to collaborate to ultimately increase the supply of authentically affordable housing but also ease access to affordable long-term finance; this partnership starts us off in the right direction as we have both a developer and financier, both leaders in their respective spaces.”
NHCC chief executive officer Kenneth Kaijuka explained that inadequate funding for housing development projects as well as insufficient and untimely project off-taking framework have hindered delivery on NHCC’s mandate.
He explained: “Informed by the great strengths and our respective mandates each party represents, we have agreed to join hands under this tripartite framework to champion mutually beneficial collaborative initiatives that will address the above underlying challenges ultimately increasing housing stock, market the existing NHCC stock, customize housing products for bank staff and other clients, under tailor-made schemes.”
Anne Juuko, the Stanbic Bank Uganda chief executive, remarked that the bank, which is Uganda’s largest commercial lender, concurred with experts that, ‘while housing is well articulated in Target 11 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), it is a key component of sustainable development across all of the goals.’
“We agree with the view that good housing drives access to basic services, contributes towards inclusive growth, and supports the development of a sustainable future, with a direct impact on the factors that contribute or mediate the effects of climate change. Through this partnership, Stanbic bank hopes to play its role towards the desired goal,” she added.
Finance minister Matia Kasaija presided over the signing ceremony and pledged to support the scheme.
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