A WIDE-ranging program complemented by a united stand is needed to solve the country’s housing problem, according to the second highest official of the land.
“The only way we can solve this is together. We need a comprehensive road map that is based on accurate baseline data, local best practices, public and private financing solutions, stakeholder consultations are all critical to our success. We need an inventory of all government properties available for housing. We will need the cooperation of all local government units for this. We want to build communities, not just houses,” said Vice President Maria Leonor G. Robredo in a video message addressed to the participants of the recently concluded 25th National Developers’ Convention of the Subdivision and Housing Developers’ Association (SHDA). “Companies that build homes have a unique role in this development story. Homes have a direct impact in the ways families feel safe. Your work matters a lot to our nation. So let us do our jobs well,” Robredo added.
At present, the country is facing a 5.7 million-unit housing backlog, which remains one of the biggest challenges of the Duterte administration.
In his keynote speech, Public Works Secretary Mark Villar noted that government expenditure on infrastructure through the Department of Public Works and Highways has been consistently increasing tremendously: P190.9 billion in 2014, P273.9 billion in 2015 and P363.5 billion in 2016. The total budget for the year 2017 is P342.3 billion. The projects are in various stages of completion and the biggest fund allocation is in Mindanao, at P133.1 billion.
Sen. Jose Victor Ejercito, chairman of the Senate Committee on Urban and Housing Resettlement, said he remains bullish because “the 17th Congress is one of the most productive times in terms of setting a legislative agenda.”
He said two bills were filed to address the housing backlog: Senate Bill (SB) 328, an Act creating the Department of Human Settlement and Urban Development; and SB 331, On-Site, In-City or Near-City Resettlement Act for Informal Settler Families.
Through the SHDA-commissioned Philippine Housing Roadmap, SHDA National President Rodel Racadio noted that “the government and the private sector have created a comprehensive and actionable development plan to meet the needs of Filipinos in all sectors of society.”
Furthermore, Racadio said several resolutions were developed during the convention. One of them is to address the housing deficit by encouraging developers to produce more than the annual average production of 350,000 units a year. In relation to this, they asked that government not to adopt the proposed moratorium on land-use re-classification and conversion.
Developers were, likewise, encouraged to focus on delivery of affordable housing, especially in the categories of low-cost, economic, and socialized housing—all of which are still on high demand.