GOVERNMENT LOOKING TO ACQUIRE MORE PRE-FAB HOUSES
Government continues to look at innovative solutions to address the rebuilding initiative in the Southern Grenadines and as a result, a Canadian firm, Engineering Building Systems (EBS) Global, recently visited Union Island.
EBS Global is a Canadian company that provides prefabricated solutions and is interested in building homes in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG).
On Friday June 30, Minister of Housing, Informal Human Settlement, Dr. Orando Brewster, Consul General to Canada Fitz Huggins, owner of EBS Global Fesih Zeki-Mert, Founder of the Canadian Afro-CARICOM Business Trade Association Shawn Allen among others took visited Union Island.
Consul General Huggins said the trip, apart from being spurred by Invest SVG’s Diaspora initiative, was also brought about by the most recent budget address where Minister of Finance and Economic Planning Hon. Camillo Gonsalves said government is hoping to build 1000 homes in an effort to counter the impact of Hurricane Beryl.
“I realize that the way we construct houses now with brick and mortar, it would be impossible to build as many houses in a year so we set out to look at prefabricated solutions so we are here today to look at how we can solve the problem,” Consul General Huggins said.
The Consul General added that Minister Brewster and his team visited EBS’s plant in Barrie, Canada and now, the team from EBS visited Union Island to assess the situation and examine whether EBS solutions can work in the Southern Grenadines.
“The technology where they are using galvanize steel is a modern way to build homes and the way of the future,” Huggins said while noting that technology is evolving and SVG is well placed to be the pilot for this type of technology in the region.
Minister Brewster told the Agency for Public Information (API) that he wanted EBS to get a first-hand view of the situation in the Southern Grenadines and now that has happened, Cabinet is expecting a proposal from the company.
Owner of EBS Global Fesih Zeki-Mert said he would like to bring his housing solutions to SVG and he thinks his light gauge metal systems are well suited for the Southern Grenadines.
He said what his solutions can do in three days, it will take traditional builders three months to accomplish.
He noted that EBS is looking at investing and he is hoping that the company can work with the government as a collaborativel effort toward sustainable recovery and modernization in housing for SVG.
