Minister of Construction Nguyễn Thanh Nghị meets with local authorities in Đồng Nai on Tuesday. Photo baodongnai.com.vn

HCM CITY — As many as 200,000 low-priced social housing units for workers need to be built to meet demand for affordable accommodations for more than 400,000 workers in the southern province of Đồng Nai, according to the provincial Department of Construction.

In the 2016-20 period, the province built only about 3,500 social housing units, including nearly 1,600 for workers, said Lê Mạnh Dũng, deputy director of the department.

Thirteen social housing projects with a combined area of 59 hectares are being implemented, supplying nearly 8,200 units for workers, Dũng said at a meeting on Tuesday (Nov 16).

Cao Tiến Dũng, chairman of the provincial People’s Committee, said the shortage of low-priced social housing has made it impossible for most workers to buy a house, leaving them living in rental accommodations with five people sharing only 12-14 square metres.

Many rental accomodations for workers are in dark and dirty environments.

Local authorities need to take responsibiltiy to address the pressing need of workers. At least two or three social housing projects need to be developed in each locality with an industrial park, he said.

Minister of Construction Nguyễn Thanh Nghị urged provincial authorities to speed up social housing projects and increase the supply of housing for workers.

Illegal construction on agricultural land in the province has yet to be put under control, he said.

The province also needs to focus on construction, infrastructure and space planning as part of an effort to develop its smart urban project.

Nearly 1.2 million labourers work in the province, including more than 614,000 at industrial parks.

Around 20,000 rental accomodations with more than 150,000 rooms exist for 450,000 tenants. —VNS