Hiyaa Project: Changes to allocation of units under different categories

Housing Ministry has made changes to the number of housing units allocated under the different categories under the Hiyaa Housing Project.

The housing units built under the project in suburban Hulhumale’, which was initially set to 7,000, has been reduced to 6,720 units.

In an announcement on Monday, the Housing Ministry informed of changes to the allocation of the 6,270 two-bedroom units under the different categories.

THE CATEGORIES AND THE CHANGES:

• H4 (Category for doctors and nurses): Housing units reduced from 475 to 233.
• H5 (Category for teachers): Housing units reduced from 625 to 523
• H6 (Category for single parents): Housing units reduced from 500 to 423
• H7 (Category for married couples between the ages of 18-40 years): Housing units reduced from 1,000 to 805
• H8 (Category for registered residents of Male’): Housing units increased from 1,000 to 1,772
• Category for applicants for Gulhifalhu housing project and the Tata housing project who did not receive housing: Housing units reduced from 300 to 120

Housing Ministry stated in the announcement that it does not include the 256 housing units designated for Male’ block redevelopment.

In a press conference earlier this Monday, Housing Minister Mohamed Aslam said the government made the decision to increase the number of housing units allocated for Male’ residents in order to prioritize resolving the housing crisis in Male’, given that the housing project is being run in the greater Male’ region. Aslam noted that a large number of people in the congested Maldivian capital to not have adequate housing.

Meanwhile, the committee established to review previous government housing projects has set receiving minimum 50 percent marks in the evaluation as a basic requirement for eligibility for housing units under the Hiyaa Housing Project.

The committee has released tentative lists of tenants under four categories, after disqualifying applicants who did not meet the requirements.

TENATIVE LISTS HAVE BEEN RELEASED FOR:

• H4 (Category for doctors and nurses)
• H5 (Category for teachers)
• H8 (Category for registered residents of Male’)
• H10 (Category for persons with disabilities and their families)

Total 111 applicants who were on the lists released by the previous administration for the four categories have been disqualified for failing to score above 50 percent marks.

The lists include the identities of the applicants, the marks they scored previously, and the marks they scored following re-evaluation.

13 applicants were disqualified under the H4 category, 16 under the H5 category, 46 under the H8 category, and 36 under the H10 category.

The opportunity to file complaints regarding the tentative lists will be open until 03:00 pm on September 14. Complaints must be submitted to the committee’s virtual portal.

The committee has yet to complete evaluations of the remaining categories. The committee said on Monday that they are working on releasing tentative lists for the remaining categories by the end of October.

Meanwhile, the committee has discarded a previous basic requirement for eligibility, that the applicant or their family must earn a monthly income above MVR 7,000, citing that the requirement denies housing opportunities to those who need social housing the most.