ZCZC
BSS-03
POOR-PEOPLE-HOUSING (with picture)
Rajshahi slum dwellers happy after getting community housing
RAJSHAHI, Aug 3, 2018 (BSS)- Many slum people have started living in brick-
built house driving out their long-lasting living life in thatched or mud-
house in the city.
“I had never thought, even in my dreams, that I would be able to live in
such a good house,” said Rupchan Begum, 46, of Chhotobangram Namopara area,
while talking to BSS in smiling face on Thursday.
Earlier on, she received a soft-interest loan worth Taka two lakh from
Community Housing Development Fund (CHDF) and constructed the house.
Currently, she is repaying the loan on monthly installment of Taka 3,300
regularly.
With this breakthrough, her level of confidence coupled with dignity in the
society has been improved to a greater extent.
“I got a new life through attaining a brick-built house,” said Shabana
Khatun, 38, wife of Jalal Uddin of Char Satbaria area.
They had just moved to their new houses, which they constructed with
support from CHDF and recently phase-out Urban Partnerships for Poverty
Reduction Project (UPPRP) – a UKAID-funded project executed by UNDP with
technical support of UN-Habitat.
With technical support from the UPPR Project poor people of Rajshahi city
have established a CHDF, a revolving fund for providing land tenure security
and better housing for the urban poor.
Rajshahi CHDF has provided housing support for 201 families in 47
settlements in 25 wards out of total 30 ones in the metropolis. Around Taka
3.25 crore have been distributed as housing loans from the fund.
CHDF has established a process for providing land tenure security and
housing. Through a number of primary savings groups.
CHDF is operating its financial activities. Like Rupchan’s settlement all
those improved settlements previously known as slums are now well-designed
community housing.
Noor Islam, Executive Engineer of Rajshahi City Corporation, said the
beneficiary communities identify and give priorities to the environmental,
social and economic challenges they face as well as the equired actions to
address them.
More than 55,000 slum people under 171 community development committees
(CDCs) have come together in anti-poverty savings scheme accumulating around
Taka 12 crore at present.
Through the savings and credit programmes, the communities now can operate
their own savings schemes and create a revolving fund from which credit
operations are being managed, added Engineer Islam, also member-secretary of
the housing scheme.
Against the savings, the community members received collateral-free loan
for operating micro-business besides addressing their emergency needs and
other family purposes and the credit figure has been cumulated to around Taka
81.69 crore.
After taking loan from CDCs, many of the members are operating different
kinds of micro business successfully allowing them to have access to a
regular income.
The poor communities operate their own savings scheme along with creating a
revolving fund from which credit operations are managed through the savings
credit programme generating a new dimension towards women empowerment and
curtailing urban poverty.
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