As many as 7.5 million need somewhere to live

The construction of dwellings has not caught up with demand. As a result, the housing deficit remains.

A case study entitled "Housing in Venezuela: A problem with a solution," authored by Economist Ángel Alayón and Engineer José María de Viana, concluded that the building of houses has been slower than the population growth, and estimated the shortage ending last year at 1.94 million houses.

Based on these numbers and the 2011 census conducted by the National Statistics Institute (INE), the report reveals that 7.5 million Venezuelans need somewhere to live.

Alayón noted that if the building of houses cannot cope with the demand of growing population, the short supply will continue on the rise. In this regard, he added that out of 7.5 million needy, 2.15 million live in shanties made of cardboard, planks, and tin, among others. The remainder includes Venezuelans who live in overcrowded conditions.

"Only to cover the population growth, 118,573 dwellings a year should be build, and if the gap is to be bridged in 15-year term, 275,000 houses should be built annually and 3,832 hectares should be developed," the economist reckoned.

Last year, the government resolved to bolster the construction of houses through the Great Mission Housing Venezuela. For such purpose, it increased the investments and set priorities as to the input management. While in 2011, over 146,000 public and private houses were completed, the official information shows that throughout 13 years, government agencies and the private sector have built a total of 648,000 houses.

The president of the Venezuelan Construction Chamber (CVC), Gilbert Dao, commented that while a peak was recorded in building, there is no planning. "The emergency results in an anarchic house development. Long time ago, plans would stop and this can be inferred from the short supply of developed lands."

marmas@eluniversal.com