Taskforce needed to address housing

National

A review of all housing and property policies in Papua New Guinea over the last 40 years calls for the Government to establish a national task force to address housing needs in the country.
The study conducted by the National Research Institute with support from the Treasury Department highlighted that there was a “serious void” in institutional arrangements to coordinate input on housing from the Government and other stakeholders.
Dr Thomas Webster, former director for NRI, and economist Dr Lindsay Kutan, who led the study, said the review covered all housing and property policy developments since independence.
Webster said there has been a lack of consistency and coherence in government policy and action.
“There is stark evidence in policy decisions by the government resulting in poor and confusing follow-up actions and as a result, there is a lack of clarity on the role of the National Housing Corporation and its existence continues to negatively influence effective policy development taking into account the complexity and long term duration of housing supply.”