Chinese Government provides RMB 349.09 million grant for Phase 2 of Social Housing Project

Project narrative

On May 16, 2017, the Chinese Government and the Government of Belarus signed letters of exchange, committing RMB 349.09 million of grant funding for Phase 2 of the Social Housing Project. The grant proceeds were drawn from an Economic and Technical Cooperation Agreement (ETCA) signed by the two governments on September 29, 2016 (see Record ID#88735) and an ETCA signed by the two governments in 2017. China’s Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) was the source of grant funding. The purpose of the project was to construct 1854 affordable housing units in the Grodno, Brest, Gomel, Mogilev, Vitebsk, and Minsk oblasts. Tianjin Electric Power Construction Co., Ltd. was the contractor responsible for implementation. A groundbreaking ceremony took place on November 24, 2017. Construction was scheduled to end in July 2018. Then, on October 24, 2018, an opening ceremony was held in Minsk, with Ambassador Cui Qiming, Belarus Deputy Minister of Construction Kruchinov, diplomats, and project representatives in attendance. Phase 2 was officially completed on December 5, 2019. An official Phase 2 handover certificate was issued on February 13, 2020. Phase 2 reportedly provided improved housing conditions for 10,000 people and 3,300 families. The Social Housing Project was undertaken in three phases and the Chinese Government funded all three phases. Phase 1 is captured in Record ID#66303. Phase 2 is captured in Record ID#66492. Phase 3 is captured in Record ID#66521. In addition, the Chinese Government also provided supplemental funding for this project through an ETCA that was signed on May 10, 2015 (captured in Record ID#66274).