Waive VAT on NHC houses, govt told

DODOMA: THE Parliament has reached a resolution that among other issues, directs the government to waive Value Added Tax on newly constructed National Housing Cooperation (NHC) houses valued at 100m/-.

The resolution was reached yesterday after Members of Parliament deliberated on the 2024 Report tabled by the Chairperson of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Land, Natural Resources and Tourism, Timotheo Mnzava (CCM – Korogwe Rural).

Currently, the newly built NHC houses that are not charged VAT are those whose value does not exceed 50m/- . In the report, Mr Mnzava said the resolution that the government is going to work on, aims at ensuring majority of Tanzanians, including public servants get access to the NHC new houses at affordable prices.

The Parliament also directed the government to settle the debt accumulated from the construction projects of buildings for four ministries.

The government should also ensure its institutions pay the debt in rental fees that they owe the Corporation. The committee chair said the Corporation has not yet completed some strategic projects against the set objective of completing them by 2025.

He said the committee received complaints from the public that the newly built houses by the Corporation, despite being well constructed, were expensive.

He said imposing VAT on the newly constructed houses was making them expensive, denying an opportunity for the public, especially ordinary Tanzanians, to purchase them.

The Parliament also directed the government to ensure it completes the Kawe 711 housing project by June, 30, 2026, whose ongoing implementation has reached 50 per cent.

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Furthermore, the government was directed to ensure NHC finalises discussions with contractors implementing the Golden Premier Housing Project by June 30, 2025 to revive the project that stalled in 2017.

CCM’s 2020-2025 election manifesto directs the government to continue strengthening NHC so that it could implement projects beneficial to the public and at affordable prices. Under the same manifesto, the government was directed to ensure the Corporation builds 1,000 lowcost houses within five years for selling and leasing to the public and public servants in Dodoma City.

CCM election document also directs NHC to complete the Morocco Square Housing Project. Mr Mzava further told the House that the project involving construction of 1,000 houses at Medeli and Njedengwa in Dodoma City is going on under Samia Housing Scheme.

Despite the challenges, the National Housing Corporation (NHC) has been performing well. For instance, in 2023/2024 fiscal year, the Corporation recorded remarkable profit of 21.8bn/- within the first eight months of the financial period.

Responding to the issues raised, Minister for Lands, Housing and Human Settlements Development Deogratius Ndejembi said the ministry would work on the resolution, and will bring feedback to Parliament on implementation.