Manama: Amna bint Ahmed Al Rumaihi, Minister of Housing and Urban Planning, emphasised that the projects currently under implementation within the Government Land Rights Development Programme, in partnership with the private sector, are witnessing continuous acceleration in terms of completion rates.
According to Bahrain News Agency, the completion rate of the Al Naseem project, executed in partnership with Delmon Gate, has reached 79%, while the Al Wadi project in Buhair, executed by Al Saraya Company, has achieved a completion rate of about 59%, and the Hoorat Sanad project, executed by Al Naml Group, has advanced to 15%.
Minister Al Rumaihi said that the Al Naseem project in Salman City, which provides 131 housing units, is currently witnessing rapid progress in construction works within the final finishing phase and electricity connections to the units. She noted that the total area of the project is estimated at 23,000 square metres, with the sizes of the residential units ranging between 171 and 190 square metres, while the built-up area for each residential unit is 265 square metres. The project is expected to be completed by the end of the last quarter of 2025.
She highlighted that the Al Wadi project in Buhair, which provides 76 housing units, has seen the completion of the concrete structure for several units, while construction, including painting and final finishing, has also been completed for other units. The project covers an area of 20,000 square metres.
The Minister also stated that the Hoorat Sanad project, which provides 47 housing units, is currently at the foundation stage and will cover an area of 10,000 square metres.
Minister Al Rumaihi explained that the policy adopted by the companies implementing the programme's projects is to carry out construction of the housing units and the associated infrastructure work simultaneously. This approach is intended to ensure the projects are completed within the specified timeframe, enabling the timely handover of units to beneficiaries. She added that the planning for these projects includes the necessary service facilities to provide a suitable residential environment for citizens.
She explained that the projects of the Government Land Rights Development Programme are seeing strong interest from citizens benefiting from the housing finance programme options, as evidenced by the rapid sell-out of unit reservations upon launch of the Al Naseem project in and the Al Wadi project at the exhibition accompanying the Innovation Summit in Social Housing, through off-plan reservations. Likewise, the Suhail project sold out within a short period following its launch at the second Housing Finance Exhibition organised by the Ministry in 2023.
The Minister noted that the tenders recently issued to expand project implementation within the programme have witnessed increasing interest from real estate development companies in the Kingdom of Bahrain, reflecting confidence in the outcomes of the programme's projects.
She also highlighted that four of the largest real estate companies, nationally and internationally, have signed memoranda of understanding to implement the Khalifa City project, which provides more than 3,000 housing units and apartments. This coincided with the opening of the Innovation in Social Housing Conference and Exhibition last April, and these companies include the alliance of Naseej and the Chinese company CMEC, Al Moayyed Group, Saudi company Retal, and the Malaysian company WCT Berhad.
Minister Al Rumaihi said that the first phase of the Government Land Rights Development Programme project plan focuses on the construction of 11 housing projects, being implemented in a number of the Kingdom's governorates, with the total number of projects implemented by the Ministry within two years to exceed 7,000 housing units and apartments, from which citizens benefit through the housing finance programme options. She noted that this programme is considered one of the main pathways to increase the Kingdom's property stock to meet the growing demand for housing finance, achieving the goals of the Government Programme 2023-2026.