THE Ministry of Lands, Housing and Survey is calling for applications for land allocation at April Ridge in Honiara.
April Ridge is the name given to an area near Gilbert Camp Aekafo and Lau Valley in east Honiara, and the area is currently unallocated and owned by the Commissioner of Lands.
Permanent Secretary Stanley Waleanisia says that a total of 268 lots are to be offered as 50-year fixed-term estates, to be developed for residential purposes.
He said preference will be given to those people who lost their houses in the April floods in Honiara, but anyone else can also apply.
The Ministry has records of the names of all those people who lost their houses to flooding in Honiara, and these records will be used when the applications are assessed. The land is to be allocated by tender process, not by direct allocation.
The Permanent Secretary said that Ministry officers had visited April Ridge this week and noted that many flood victims have recently moved into the area and they are living in tents.
The officers informed those people about the tender process and told them it is important that they submit their applications if they want to have a chance of securing land title for the area they have moved onto, otherwise the land may be allocated to other people and if so they would be required to vacate the land.
Ministry officers will be visiting the flood affected areas along the Mataniko River on Sunday afternoon 12th October to raise awareness about the tender process.
Anyone wishing to obtain land title at April Ridge must visit the Ministry of Lands cashier to purchase an application form for a non-refundable fee of $50, then complete the form and place it in the tender box located at the Ministry’s customer service counter.
All application forms must have a copy of the receipt attached, otherwise the application will be considered invalid.
The form requires applicants to provide details of their employment in Honiara and evidence of their ability to pay the premium and annual land rentals and to develop the land.
The closing date for tenders was originally to be Monday 20th October, but this has now been extended to 3:00pm on Monday 27th October to give people more time to apply.