MPs Propose Raising Housing Support Age for Women to 60
Members of Parliament (MPs) have put forward a proposal to increase the age limit for divorced, widowed, or abandoned women to receive government housing support from 50 to 60 years old.
The proposal is intended to enhance access to housing ownership, purchase financing, and construction loans. MP Lulua Al Rumaihi, who introduced the motion, explained that the change would help eliminate barriers that often force women to depend on their eldest sons for housing.
The Housing and Urban Planning Ministry highlighted that recent changes had already relaxed some restrictions. Ministerial Decision No. 1474 of 2023 amended Article 3 of Ministerial Decision No. 909 of 2015, allowing divorced, widowed, or abandoned women without children, as well as orphaned unmarried women, to apply for temporary housing up until the age of 60. Those over 60 can still apply if they can live independently.
Bahrain has a longstanding history of providing housing support to women. Since 2004, women have been eligible to apply as heads of households, either independently or with a husband. More recently, the scheme was expanded to include Bahraini women married to non-Bahrainis, provided their children hold Bahraini nationality.
The Parliament's Public Utilities and Environment Committee found that while recent changes had addressed temporary housing, they did not extend to ownership or financing. MPs will now decide whether to align all housing services with the proposed new age limit.
The committee has expressed support for the proposal, believing it would ensure long-term housing assistance for women in need.
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