The National Housing Trust (NHT) wishes to reiterate its position on the Guaranteed Purchase Programme (GPP), and to address a few matters that have been raised in light of continued reporting on a terminated agreement under the programme. The NHT has not signed a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) neither has the NHT at any point during the claim against Dexim Holdings, sought to keep any elements of the arrangements secret. The claim made by the NHT proceeded to mediation. The rules of court require that what takes place at mediation and documents prepared for or in the course of mediation are kept confidential. The non-disclosure and confidentiality provision in the settlement agreement is consistent with those requirements from the rules of court as to the conduct of mediation. This does not mean that the terms of the settlement would be, or were intended to be, unavailable for viewing by members of the public. The very agreement provided for the material terms to be entered as a Consent Judgement in Court. After the settlement agreement was signed by the parties, the entire agreement, not just the material terms, was annexed to the Consent Order and filed at the Supreme Court on January 15, 2024. Orders of the Court can be accessed by the public at the Supreme Court in accordance with Rule 3.14 of the Civil Procedure Rules. The NHT states categorically that there has not been any loss of NHT funds arising from the transaction. Under the GPP framework, any funds advanced by the NHT to a developer are fully secured by a bond which guarantees the repayment of any sums advanced to purchase units in the event that an agreement is terminated. This was the case in the agreement with Dexim Holdings. The NHT has called on the bonds and is in the process of obtaining full repayment. The GPP framework has been designed to protect the interests of all parties, and importantly, to ensure the good stewardship of the NHT's resources. The NHT uses its resources to undertake activities that will produce housing opportunities for Jamaicans whether through direct-build projects, joint ventures or other arrangements with developers, such as the GPP. The GPP was designed to encourage private sector participation and stimulate development in the low-income segment of the housing market where the greatest need for housing now exists. Under this initiative, the NHT agrees to purchase a specific number of housing units built by real estate developers on their own land for onward sale to NHT contributors. In effect, the GPP incentivises construction in the affordable segment of the housing market through the NHT absorbing the market risk and guaranteeing the purchase of the agreed number of units. The Guaranteed Purchase Agreement sets out the responsibilities of each party, performance standards, and other terms and conditions to guide the arrangement. Under the terms, the NHT may advance sums to the developer representing a percentage of the development budget, subject to certain pre-conditions being satisfied by the developer. Questions have been raised as to why the NHT gave consideration to this approach and that it was not a part of the original GPP terms. The GPP has evolved over time and the NHT has conducted reviews and made improvements to various elements of the programme since 2018 based on feedback from developers. One such consideration is that the NHT makes an assessment of each project upon approval and determines whether, in the interest of the end-users (contributors), an advance payment/deposit would result in a lower cost per unit for the houses to be bought under the programme. Where it is determined that an advance would favour this outcome, and the developer is able to furnish the NHT with a bond from an established financial institution guaranteeing the complete repayment, on demand, of any sum advanced, the NHT may provide such an advance. All proposals received under the programme are put through the same review, evaluation and approval processes. The agreement in question, is consistent with similar arrangements with other developers under the programme, at that time. The GPP since its inception, has performed creditably and has assisted the NHT in its mandate of providing affordable housing solutions for Jamaicans. The programme has realized more than 3,000 solutions to date. -30-
