ISLAMABAD, Jan 29: Federal Minister for Housing and Works Syed Safwanullah has said housing had been accorded top priority by the government under the prime minister's housing for all initiative.

He was speaking at a meeting with a World Bank team here on Thursday. The six-member team led by Robert M. Buckley is visiting Pakistan to discuss project concept note on the proposed Pakistan Housing Finance Project with the federal ministries concerned, provinces, State Bank of Pakistan and other agencies.

The minister informed the team that apart from providing houses to the people, the government was keen to develop the housing sector as it had linkages with as many as forty-four industries.

He said local and foreign investment in the sector could accelerate economic development of the country. The minister said housing finance was one of several major constraints in the development of the sector.

Land title record, acquisition laws, registration systems, land information system, foreclosure laws, rent control act, standardization of building materials and construction techniques for low-cost houses, building codes and regulations, property registration and record keeping etc., were also major constraints and needed to be addressed for development of the sector, he added.

He said there was a serious issue of capacity building and monitoring system in the implementing agencies, including the ministry of housing and works, which was charged with monitoring of the sector at macro level.