Twenty-six people in eastern Trinidad received home improvement grant cheques from Housing and Urban Development Minister Camille Robinson-Regis on Wednesday.

The handover took place at the Bon Air Gardens Community Centre, Arouca.

The beneficiaries are people who live between Manzanilla and Bon Air.

Robinson-Regis said the home improvement grant programme is part of the government's comprehensive housing plan.

“We are expanding help to families in need. It is part of the national programme for human development. Sometimes they are repairs and other times they are home extensions due to the growth of families,” Robinson-Regis said. “I am happy that people can receive their help to improve their living conditions.”

She said the government is investing in people despite the economic difficulties the world is facing due to the covid19 pandemic.

“The pandemic showed us that with challenges we are resilient people. Government and people take care of each other and support each other. Today the government is handing out cheques to improve their living conditions, to be in comfortable homes,” she said.

Robinson-Regis said she knows material prices and the cost of living are going up, but this was still a contribution to making their homes better.

[caption id="attachment_956561" align="alignnone" width="1024"] The Minister of Housing and Urban Development Camille Robinson-Regis presented the cheque from the Ministry’s Home Improvement Grant Program to Rosanne Francois, during the ceremony held at the Bon Air Gardens Community Centre, Arouca, on Wednesday. - Photo by Grevic Alvarado[/caption]

She said her ministry had received more than 19,700 applications and they are fortunate to have been selected for this grant.

In this opportunity 70 families benefit from a total of $800,000.

“Construction is going up, we're making progress,” she said.

Also at the ceremony were Minister in the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, Adrian Leonce and permanent secretary Claire Davidson-Williams.

Approved repairs:

Roof and roof repair; electrical work; plumbing, including installing toilets and indoor bathrooms; improved facilities for people with disabilities; expanding, improving and adapting spaces to alleviate overcrowding; replacing damaged floors, doors, cabinets and windows; other work considered critical to maintain the integrity of the structure.