Housing shortage mitigation in Guyana and Barbados

In Guyana, the national housing programme has reported significant progress, with the Central Housing and Planning Authority allocating 3,245 house lots in the first half of 2026. This brings the total number of lots delivered since 2020 to over 50,000. Recent allocations have prioritized low-income families and women, with approximately 47.7 percent of allocations going to women.

Efforts in Guyana have expanded to include specific housing developments for Amerindian communities along the Linden-Soesdyke Highway, including locations such as St. Cuthbert’s Mission and Hararuni. The government is also working on a program to provide 500 houses for single-parent women and intends to support indigenous entrepreneurs through the upcoming Guyana Development Bank.

In Barbados, the government is addressing a chronic shortage of affordable homes by targeting vacant lots and derelict properties. Officials are considering legal mechanisms, such as compulsory acquisition or abandonment clauses, to rehabilitate an estimated 15,000 such properties to address a backlog of 8,000 to 10,000 applications.