Ministry to build 16,000 houses for fishermen

The Jakarta Post, Thu, 10/06/2011

The Public Housing Ministry says it will build around 16,000 affordable across the country, especially for fishermen.

“We will build around 16,000 very inexpensive houses for fishermen. The locations will be all throughout Indonesia and will later be determined by the Maritime Affairs and Fishery Ministry,” Public Housing Minister Suharso Monoarfa said Thursday as quoted by tribunnews.com.

He said he hoped that the houses, to be priced between Rp 6 million (US$672) and Rp 11 million, would reduce the backlog of housing in the country and also improve the prosperity of fishermen.

“Although they [fishermen] go to sea for two to three weeks at a time, they have homes to return to. Of course we don’t want them living in uninhabitable houses. It is hoped that through this cheap housing, fishermen and their families can have a better quality of life,” he said.