By Alpha Abu
The Minister of Lands, Housing and Country Planning Dr. Turad Senessie has said that the Ministry will shift its focus from allocation of lands to proper planning of urban settlements.
In his first engagement with the press at the Youyi building in Freetown on Thursday 25 February 2021, since assuming office this year, Dr. Senessie said over the years the Ministry has underperformed and was unable to achieve those other key components of housing and planning and was instead focused on land allocation especially in the western area.
He believed under his administration there has to be a change and said the government would now focus on country planning and affordable housing and ensure proper city/ town planning as a priority with land allocation secondary.
He spoke of a change in approach in the discharge of duties and revealed plans to create separate directorates charged with various tasks. He said inorder to meet the timely expectations of the public, internally he intends to have a directorate of country planning, and that of housing, the latter which will review and develop a Town and Country Planning Act.
The directorate of country planning will be able to control and regulate town and urban planning. He said they want to establish an Urban Design Unit and Country and District Planning Committees that will initiate holistic plans and conduct research to town and country planning matters. He stated that the people must be informed on decisions reached and said the directorate on housing would focus with partners to build affordable housing around the country for low and middle- income earners. “We want to envision the modernisation of our towns and cities to replace those derelict and shanty communities that we find around our towns and cities”, the Minister explained. He promised to encourage the setting up of Home Finance institutions and the large scale production of local materials to help the people.
He said they would like to work with the people and other partners including the Sierra Leone Housing Corporation to improve service delivery and help facilitate access to credit for building, and mortgage for low and middle- income earners. He said they would also encourage the creation of Green Space and the enabling environment for private investors to build multi-storey car parks and public toilets in cities. He bemoaned the absence of land banks which he promised to have them established around the country so as to attract investment and achieve national development.
He disclosed how the Surveys Directorate in the Ministry has now been tasked to inform communities, stakeholders and parliament to secure land and create land banks for investment. This he noted would create the space for large- scale investment in agriculture, manufacturing and production. All these he said will generate jobs and support the economy. He said because of the limited land mass in the Western Area as compared to the rest of the country, people have had acrimonious tussles over the years. To reduce the contentious issue of land ownership, the minister disclosed of plans to introduce the digitalisation of land title and deeds.
He was of the view that Sierra Leoneans would want to see their towns and cities competing with those in sub-Saharan Africa and other parts of the world, which he was certain the new direction government would work towards achieving. He acknowledged the corrupt, chaotic and unregulated nature of land acquisition and possession in the western area and promised a digitalised system in place, the problems will ease. “We will get this job done”, he vowed.
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