Lack of infrastructure, lack of living space
Late afternoon, after a nearly 10-hour long shift, Ms. Hoang Thi Ly - a worker at a mineral processing plant in Bao Thang commune, Lao Cai province returned to her rented room of less than 15m2. The small room, with a hot corrugated iron roof in summer, damp when it rains, is the living space of a family of 4 people.
The rent is more than one million VND per month, not including electricity and water. Cramped, inconvenient, but still have to try because there is no other choice," Ms. Ly shared.
Not only Ms. Ly, thousands of workers in Lao Cai, especially in industrial parks and urban areas, are still living in similar conditions. Temporary boarding houses are springing up rapidly, but lack infrastructure and minimum living space.
The dream of a small, stable apartment, where children have a study corner, and families have a true living space is still far away for many people.
Just having a house of about 40-50m2, paid in installments, we are very happy," Mr. Nguyen Van Tuan, a worker in Tang Loong industrial park, expressed.
Opening the way" for the dream of settling down
Faced with that urgent need, Lao Cai is promoting the development of social housing as a fundamental solution to improve living conditions for people, especially low-income people.
The province has planned dozens of hectares of land in favorable locations, prioritizing near industrial parks and urban areas to implement projects. Many mechanisms and policies have been removed to attract businesses to participate in investment and shorten implementation time.
Currently, a number of social housing projects with a scale of thousands of apartments have been and are being implemented in the area. The projects not only focus on quantity but also focus on quality, ensuring synchronous infrastructure, schools, community living areas, and essential services.
According to the plan, in the period 2025-2030, Lao Cai aims to complete about 8,300 social housing units. This is considered an important step to solve the "thirst" for housing that has lasted for many years.
Notably, new policies from the Central Government are creating a "green channel" for social housing, helping to shorten procedures and accelerate project progress. This opens up great expectations for increased supply in the coming time.
Waiting for the day "to get home to go home
Through surveys, Lao Cai province is currently implementing the construction of 7 social housing projects. Along with that, 8 projects have been approved for investment policy and announced 33 planned land areas for social housing development.
Mr. Giang Seo Phu - working at a cement factory in Tran Yen commune said that the story of social housing is always a topic mentioned in workers' shift meals.
Hearing that there is a social housing project near the working area soon, my husband and I also investigated. If we meet the loan conditions, we will definitely register," the H'Mong ethnic man said, his eyes lit with hope.
For Mr. Phu and many workers in mountainous areas, owning an apartment is not only improving accommodation but also an important milestone in life. That is when they can feel secure in working, accumulating, and raising children in a better environment.
According to Mr. Ly Binh Minh - Vice Chairman of Lao Cai Provincial People's Council, developing social housing is an "important political task", aimed at ensuring social security and improving people's lives, especially workers and low-income people.
The Provincial People's Council especially focuses on publicity and transparency in the process of appraising beneficiaries, ensuring that each apartment reaches the right hands of those who are truly in difficulty, avoiding policy profiteering" - Mr. Ly Binh Minh emphasized.
