Rules to check building of houses in the offing
Thursday October 29 2020
According to the new master plan, the current and future housing stock demand is met through upgrading informal settlements before allowing occupation of new land space in designated city boundaries. PHOTO | Cyril Ndegeya
Building rules could soon change as the government mulls restrictions of structures in urban centres nationwide to align them with master plans.
In a new development, Rwanda Today learnt that the government resolved that current and future housing demand will be met through densifying existing cities as well as upgrading informal settlements before allowing occupation of new space in designated city boundaries.
This means that even after the recently published national land use and development masterplan designated expanded boundaries for all the more than 28 cities, 73 urban settlements and emerging centers in the country, expansion of housing beyond today’s built-up space can be allowed only when existing settlements or those that have to be upgraded to high-density settlements have been covered.
“It will involve sequencing or phasing of settlements, and that means that no new settlement sites can emerge when there is another one still in progress. It’s the only way we can minimise urban sprawl and correct past mistakes when it comes to uncontrolled losses of land to urbanization,” said Noel Nsanzineza, Rwanda Housing Authority acting director general.
The changes are part of the strategic adjustments of settlement structures adopted under the new land use and development masterplan to cope with pressure on land use arising from high population density propelling demand for large housing stock.
The housing assessment estimates there are 2.8 million housing units while an additional 150,000 units are needed annually for the country to meet 5.5 million units needed by 2050.
Officials at Rwanda Land Management and Use Authority (RLMUA) indicate that concerned government agencies are expected to embark on the harmonization exercise of all master plans for secondary cities, emerging cities and urban settlement sites in Districts after completion and subsequent publication of the one for Kigali City.
The harmonisation will clearly state policy to restrict uncontrolled expansion of the built up area, its operationalization and functionality prior to full implementation planned for 2024, indicated the housing regulator.
Details of the new national land use and development master plan for instance show that the government wants to limit total built up area to strictly 15.1 per cent of the national surface in a bid to save land space for the much needed food production as agriculture takes the lion share of 47.2 per cent.