THE Ministry of Housing and Water’s Central Housing and Planning Authority (CHPA) yesterday inked an agreement with Toolsie Persaud Ltd and

Group of Companies under which the latter entity will offer building materials for sale at whole sale prices to house lot owners who fall within the low/moderate income and vulnerable categories.

At the signing ceremony between the Ministry of Housing and Water and Toolsie Persaud’s yesterday: from left: Minister of Housing and Water, Irfaan Ali; Ms. Myrna Pitt; Mr. Avinash Persaud and Mr. Karidullah.

This means that low and moderate CHPA allottees, including the disabled, can now benefit from as much as 10 to 15 per cent discounts when making purchases of building construction materials from Toolsie Persaud’s.  This include lumber, quarry materials, electrical and other hardware items – you name it, the firm’s Commercial Manager/Director, Mr. Kadirullah, confirmed. This announcement was made at a media briefing held yesterday at the Ministry of Housing and Water, Brickdam,. Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Housing and Water, Mr. Emile Mc Garrel, noted that the partnership was brokered as government seeks to continue finding ways in which to promote public/private partnership for the provision of housing.  Through this initiative, he said, a stellar private sector organisation in Guyana has come on board to help in the realisation of home ownership for low income and moderate income earning Guyanese. Meanwhile, in brief remarks to the media, Minister of Housing and Water, Irfaan Ali who expressed appreciation for the offer made by Toolsie Persaud, said: “We are inking an agreement and understanding with Toolsie Persaud, whereby every single allottee of a low income or moderate income house lot, or any one being part of the construction of the ‘Turn Key Home’ or ‘Revolving Home’, will benefit from the wholesale price of building materials and supplies.” This offer he said, also includes - any of the contractors working in partnership with the Ministry and a financial institution.  Ali noted that, while it was a simple ceremony, it is an event that would have tremendous impact on ordinary Guyanese, who fall within the rank and file of the CHPA’s low income earners or low/middle income earners. The Housing Minister recalled that during last year, his Ministry launched an initiative which saw it partnering with the private sector in developing programmes that would bring greater benefit to the consumers, and to ensure that the market pricing mechanism does not pose and an additional burden on the allottees in the construction of their homes. This, he sees, as an excellent example of the partnership between the Housing sector and the private sector, in advancing programmes and policies that are sustainable, and reach every segment of the society. He hinted too that Toolsie Persaud, at some later time would be announcing a major initiative in which they are working on expanding their industrial and manufacturing facilities that would create hundreds of jobs along the new East Bank Development segment that will become very highly populated. Similarly, the Ministry has on the cards, negotiating an arrangement with one of the cement