Korean firm wins major Ghana housing deal

SEOUL — South Korea's STX Group said it signed a 10-billion-dollar deal Wednesday to build 200,000 homes in Ghana over the next six years.

The construction group said in a statement it signed the agreement with the Ghanaian government in Seoul on the housing project, which would extend to 10 cities including the capital Accra from 2010 to 2015.

It said the two sides also signed a deal to launch a joint venture for the project at a ceremony attended by STX Group chairman Kang Duk-Soo and Albert Abongo, Ghana's housing minister.

The South Korean group said Ghana suffers from a chronic housing shortage but is stepping up efforts to build more homes under President John Atta Mills.

It said the government would provide free land for the houses and purchase 90,000 of them in advance, with the remaining 110,000 to be sold to the public. Ghana's HFC Bank would finance the project, it added.

"The group will continue to enhance cooperation with Ghana, which is abundant in natural resources, in the future," Kang said, calling the deal "a significant achievement" in Africa.