Ansaar Management Company
Affordable Housing Developer for Low-Income Segments
AMC, which is led by former Acumen Fellow Jawad Aslam, is working to build affordable housing for low-income customers in Pakistan.
SNAPSHOT
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Ansaar Management Company (AMC) is a low-cost housing development and management company in Pakistan. For its first project located outside of Lahore, AMC will develop 150 commercial plots and more than 2,300 residential plots, providing homes to nearly 30,000 people. AMC’s long-term vision is to scale affordable housing across Pakistan.
The Challenge
- Poverty rates in Pakistan are nearing 50 percent. The country faces a housing shortage of six million homes, and forecasts predict that low-income populations in major urban centers are expected to double in the next 15 years.
- Half of the urban population lives in unplanned squatter settlements that lack electricity, clean water and sanitation. Despite the deplorable conditions, residents are required to pay considerable rents. And, without legal title to the land they live on, they can be evicted at any time and hold no economic collateral with which to gain access to formal credit markets.
The Innovation
- AMC is a low-cost housing development and management company established by a former Acumen Fund Fellow in 2009. Its focus is on scalability and sustainability. AMC plans to build communities centered around commercial hubs, schools, recreational facilities and places of worship, and equip them with utilities such as electricity, water and sewage removal. AMC is targeting those who earn 8,000 to 20,000 Pakistani rupees ($93 to 233 USD) per month, a segment served inadequately by both the public and private sectors.
- AMC grew out of Saiban, an Acumen Fund investee known for its incremental housing model focused on self-reliance and community development, and is applying Saiban's insight at a larger scale.
The Impact
- For its first project, AMC will develop 150 commercial plots and more than 2,300 residential plots, providing homes to nearly 30,000 people outside of Lahore. After a thriving community has been built, AMC will sell the remaining 25 to 30 percent of land at a premium. This will help ensure the company’s financial sustainability. Over time, AMC’s vision is to scale across Pakistan and become a global leader in the provision of affordable housing communities.