The governments of Canada and Manitoba announced the joint investment of an additional $104 million over five years to help create more affordable housing for individuals and families across the province. The funding will be delivered through an extension to the Investment in Affordable Housing (IAH) agreement.
“Our Government is proud to partner with the Province of Manitoba to ensure quality, affordable housing is available. This bilateral agreement provides flexibility for the province to decide how to allocate this substantial investment according to their local needs and priorities,” said the Honourable Candice Bergen, Minister of State for Social Development. “As a result, we are also creating needed jobs and opportunities for apprentices.”
“We know that affordable, good-quality housing provides the stability people need to upgrade their education, get jobs, raise their families and actively participate in their communities,” said the Honourable Peter Bjornson, Minister of Housing and Community Development. “This partnership with the federal government helps us work toward the goal of providing good homes to meet the needs of all Manitobans and build stronger communities across the province.”
The federal portion of this funding comes from Economic Action Plan 2013, which announced the Government of Canada’s commitment to investing more than $1.25 billion nationally over five years to extend the Investment in Affordable Housing and to creating opportunities for apprentices, which will support the training of skilled labour in residential housing. Governments will report annually to the public regarding the investments and progress toward achieving the intended outcomes of the IAH.
Under the IAH, the Province of Manitoba has the flexibility to design and deliver a range of affordable housing programs to address local housing needs and priorities.
The Manitoba government will be investing in increasing the supply of affordable housing and providing citizens good places to live by:
- increasing the quality of rental accommodation in the private market,
- assisting homeowners in making adaptations and emergency repairs to their homes through renovation programming, and
- increasing access to affordable housing for households in need through rent supplements.
On July 4, 2011, the Governments of Canada and Manitoba announced an IAH agreement with a combined investment of some $62 million for the 2011-2014 period. This new agreement extends the original agreement for the 2014-2019 period with an additional combined investment of some $104 million. From April 2011 to March 2014, the IAH has already helped more than 183,600 households nationally, including more than 2,150 in Manitoba.
The Manitoba government recently reached its five-year goal to provide funding commitments to create 1,500 new units of affordable housing throughout the province. The province is now working toward its new commitment to create another 500 affordable and 500 social housing units in the next three years. Manitoba Housing and Community Development’s overall strategy complements Budget 2014, a plan to create good jobs, grow the economy and protect front-line services for families by focusing on what matters most to Manitoba families.
More information on Manitoba’s investments in the future with a vision of strong, healthy communities where individuals and families thrive is available at www.gov.mb.ca/housing.
