Denmark Will Invest in Greenland's Housing
It is only fair that Danish money goes to renovation in Greenland, says the head of government.
Many of the rental homes need a loving hand, because they have been far from maintained, according to several people whom DR has met in Nuuk.
The “Sletten” apartment blocks are located in the center of Nuuk, are owned by the Greenlandic self-government, and are part of the dilapidated housing stock in Greenland, which could perhaps look forward to a helping hand from Denmark.
According to the new government foundation, Denmark will invest in housing and infrastructure to develop Greenlandic society.
And many of the self-government’s rental homes are very worn out and will cost a lot of money to renovate, says Steven Arnfjord, professor of social sciences at the University of Greenland.
“We are talking billions, and we have been talking about billions for a long time to maintain the housing. It has been found that it is cheaper to renovate instead of demolishing and building new, and that is also a good thing for the rental price that comes when the housing is renovated.”
Housing Became Greenland’s Responsibility in 1987
The government wants to invest in the housing, even though Greenland took over the housing area in 1987 and has since been responsible for renovating the housing.
But perhaps Greenland bought the pig in the poke, believes Steven Arnfjord, professor of social sciences at the University of Greenland:
“They may have gotten it a little too quickly without reading the fine print when they took over the housing stock. But it was important that Greenland itself administers the housing, so that we are as close to the decision-making power as possible.”
And even though responsibility for the housing formally lies with Greenland, it is still appropriate for Denmark to help, says Greenlandic Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen.
“When Greenland took over the housing area, it was a fairly run-down housing stock that they took over, and the fact that we will then be able to look together in dialogue to see how we can improve welfare in Greenland in this way, I think is extremely positive.”
But why should Denmark put money into areas that Greenland has already taken back?
“If the Danish side has an ambition that we should have equality in the community we are in now, then we are also talking about the citizens’ conditions. And that equality does not exist. The citizens of the outer districts of Greenland do not have as good conditions as the citizens of the Danish outer districts and smaller municipalities.”
It has not been possible to obtain information from the Prime Minister’s Office on how much money is to be allocated to the Greenlandic homes and how it will be done.
Source: DR (in Danish)