Minister of National Planning, Housing and Infrastructure Mohamed Aslam has revealed there are over 17,000 families in Male’ City that are accommodated in inadequate spaces for living.
Speaking at the Parliament of the Maldives, Housing Minister Aslam stated a place is deemed inadequate for living if the floor space is smaller than 600 square feet. The minister revealed 17,073 families in Male’ City are living in floor spaces smaller than 600 square feet, of which 11,951 families are migrant families from the atolls. He added 70% of the population in Male’ is made up of individuals who migrated from the atolls and are not registered as citizens of Male’.
The housing minister stated the housing need assessment conducted in the capital revealed there are 1,336 citizens of Male’ and 3,137 citizens of the atolls living in Male’ who are in need of council housing. He added a further 2,138 citizens of Male’ and 2,916 citizens of the atolls living in Male’ who are in need of affordable housing.
In his remarks, the housing minister noted there are major challenges in providing affordable housing for middle class families in Male’. He expressed an urgent solution is also required for individuals who have migrated from the atolls to Male’ and are accommodated in places unfit for living.