Global Arab Network | King Saudi Arabia Creates New Housing Ministry

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King Saudi Arabia Creates New Housing Ministry

Global Arab Network - - Talal Abdullah

Sunday, 27 March 2011 13:17

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Riyadh, Saudi Arabia has created a Ministry of Housing to be headed by Shuwaish Al-Duwaihi, current Governor of the General Housing Authority , SAP reports. Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz issued a number of decrees on Friday including one for the establishment of a Ministry of Housing, which will get all the authority and responsibilities of GHC and other departments related to housing, the Saudi Press Agency reported by Saudi daily "Arab News" on Saturday as saying. It will also have the full control of land for housing in the Kingdom.

The decree also banned the use of such land for any purpose other than the government's housing schemes.

"All jobs and officials working in the housing sector have been transferred to the Ministry of Housing. All financial allocations and properties related to housing are also transferred to the ministry. These include all documents and plans of existing and future projects and contracts," the decree said.

The king also ordered the formation of the board of directors of the Real Estate Development Fund (REDF) under the chairmanship of the minister of housing with its members drawn from the Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs, Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Economy and Planning and the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency. Three members will be nominated by the king on the recommendations of the minister of housing. The orders also said steps would be initiated to amend the existing REDF statutes.

As part of efforts to ease the growing housing shortage in the country, the king ordered a few days ago an increase in the minimum housing loan from SR300,000 to SR500,000.

The order also included the construction of 500,000 homes.

The Kingdom has five million residential units at present. But the overall number of units needed by 2021 is estimated to reach two million additional housing units, according to an independent study conducted by Jones Lang Lasalle, Saudi Arabia.

In another decree, Ibrahim Al-Tasan, chief of the private affairs of the king, was relieved from his position and appointed an adviser at the royal court.

The deputy chief of the king's private affairs, Ibrahim Al-Isa, has been appointed the new chief of the king's private affairs. Undersecretary for the king's private affairs Abdullah Al-Dukayyil has been appointed deputy chief of the king's private affairs.

The king also appointed Abdul Lateef Al-Harithy as an undersecretary at the Ministry of Justice.

Global Arab Network

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