TEF pumping $1billion into housing projects for tourism workers
Published:Tuesday | May 8, 2018 | 5:15 PM
Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett has announced a number of initiatives aimed at providing housing solutions to workers in the tourism sector.
In his contribution to the Sectoral Debate in Parliament on Tuesday, Bartlett said that the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF) and the Housing Agency of Jamaica are taking steps to develop parcels of land for housing for tourism workers.
There are also plans to provide basic infrastructure for informal settlements in which a number of tourism workers live.
Bartlett announced that the TEF is pumping $1 billion into initiatives to provide housing for tourism workers.
A survey conducted by the Ministry of Tourism revealed that 85 per cent of the workers in the accommodations sector did not own a home.
The survey also showed that 94 per cent of the workers in the sector contribute to the National Housing Trust.
However, 88 per cent of them have never received a benefit from the Trust.
The study also indicated that workers in the sector could not afford a house valued at more than $2.5 million.
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