Just 18 months after the fall of Muammar Gaddafi's regime, the AJ's sister publication, MEED, has discovered that Libya's transitional government is preparing to relaunch an ambitious scheme aimed at tackling the country's chronic housing shortage. Insiders say the total cost of the building programme could be more than $100 billion over the next decade, making Libya one of the largest potential construction markets in the Middle East and North Africa region. The news will be welcomed by UK-based practices, including Edward Cullinan Architects, AU Studio, RMJM, Dexter Moren and Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios, which were all working in Libya before the civil war. The lack of public housing and lengthy waiting lists for homes is a massive issue for the new government, which was elected in July. Mahmoud Bashir Ajaj, chairman of Libya's Housing and Infrastructure Board (HIB), says the country faces a housing shortfall of approximately 500,000 units by 2020. Before the revolution, an estimated $11 billion-worth of housing projects was under construction.
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