Subsidies for Construction and Rehabilitation of Dwellings Continue to Grow in Sancti Spiritus

Subsidies granted by the Cuban government since early this year have already benefited about 900 applicants in the territory, with nearly 25 million pesos.

The subsidies for the construction and rehabilitation of housing, granted by the Cuban government since early this year as a practical help to families with lack of sufficient funds, have already benefited about 900 applicants in the territory, with nearly 25 million pesos.

All cases are proposed to the Municipal Administration Councils (CAM, for its Spanish acronym), responsible for making the final decision.

Noel Carballo, vice chairman of the Provincial Administration Council in charge of the area of ​​construction, noted that about 5 800 people have been treated at the offices of the Housing Institute so far, some of them affected by recent heavy rain events. Around 1420 cases of that total have been approved.

“CAMs have identified critical cases, but these are sometimes unaware of their possibilities, so we asked them to visit those and explained they may opt for subsidies, which can reach up to 80,000 pesos for the construction of a 25 square meters basic housing or a lesser amount for conservation actions or comprehensive rehabilitation”, explained the official.

The money for this assistance depends on the amount of retail sales of construction materials with unsubsidized prices to the population: a 40 percent of the total handed over to Commerce for the state budget is taken.

Although plans for delivery of these products to trade units have been met in the overwhelming majority of cases, some resources sometimes fail because they depend on national allocations which are not sufficient, as steel and carpentry.

Subsidies, born with the premise that no one in Cuba is left behind, requires of a high individual responsibility of the beneficiaries, who should enforce contracts and use finances for the intended purpose, and actively engage with the whole family in solving their housing problems.