The report on the work of the Board of Directors of the Cyprus Land Development Organization was presented at the Presidential Palace
The report on the work of the Board of Directors of the Cyprus Land Development Organization (COAG), which was appointed on 22/7/2021, was presented late on Wednesday afternoon at an event at the Presidential Palace by the President of the Board, Eleni Koussiu Hatzidimitriou.
He pointed out that after the termination of the Low Paying Housing Scheme (SHSHA) the FSA recommended to the Ministry of Finance the establishment of a debt settlement framework for the Scheme and the FSA proposal was listened to, resulting in it being transformed into a comprehensive debt management plan, according to OIKIA standards, as explained by Mrs Kousiou Hatzidimitriou. The completed plan will be announced in early 2024 and the outgoing Board is particularly happy and proud of the outcome of this matter, he said.
In her speech, Mrs. Koussiu Hatjidimitriou cited the main points of the Organization's action, among which are the promotion of the project for 138 affordable housing in Limassol, as well as the apartment buildings of the Ianthi project in Larnaca.
As mentioned by Ms. Koussiu Hatzidimitriou, the negotiations with the Municipality of Limassol for the project of 138 units with affordable rent, were completed in December 2021. The Project of Affordable Rent KOAG will be implemented with partial funding from the state, on land that will be granted with consideration from the Municipality of Limassol in Agios Nikolaos. The total state funding will be €16 million and will be paid to the OCAG over a period of four years.
Also, the President of KOAG mentioned that in 2023 the bids were awarded and the construction works started for the construction of the Ianthi complex in Larnaca. The first phase of the project, he said, consists of two building units and a total of 24 two- and three-bedroom apartments. He pointed out that these are available at a very affordable selling price. He noted that the project will be ready to be delivered in January 2025, while half of the apartments have already been offered to beneficiaries who submitted a relevant application and were approved by KOAG for purchase.
The Mr. Koussiu Hatzidimitriou also noted that in 2022, 40 years of operation of the Organization will be completed, a milestone that was sealed with the adoption of a new logo, which is the graphic representation of the human-centered nature of the organization, as he pointed out.
The logo was unveiled for the first time at an event held at the construction site of the EKALIS apartment building in Kaimakli, which has since been completed and consists of 16 two- and three-bedroom apartments, of which 50% have been sold, as buyers are entitled to take advantage from the Ministry of Interior's plans to secure sponsorship for the purchase of a house in a rural area.
The President of the OCAG also noted that in July 2023 the Organization prepared and submitted to the Ministry of the Interior a study with eight possible scenarios with various variables regarding the future development program of the OCAG, which contributed, as she said, to the participation of the OCAG in the new housing policy announced in October 2023 by the Ministry of the Interior.
In the context of the new Housing Policy, KOAG, among other things, manages the “Renovate – Rent” Plan “, the management of Urban Planning Incentives as a Management Body for the offer of affordable housing and for the purchase of building coefficients, as well as participation as a member of the Housing Coordinating Body.
Ms Koussiu Hatzidimitriou he also noted that the Board of Directors found that the income criteria of the OCAG remained without revision for a decade, with the result that a large portion of the population cannot benefit from housing solutions. Thus, the Board of Directors sent a proposal to the Ministry of the Interior with new income criteria, which was approved by the Council of Ministers.
