Muscat, 7 October, 2026 (Nosheen): Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif met Oman’s Minister of Housing and Urban Planning Dr Khalfan bin Saeed bin Mubarak Al Shueili in Muscat, where the two sides held detailed discussions on housing and urban planning. Dr Khalfan warmly welcomed Maryam Nawaz and her delegation and congratulated her on receiving the UN-Habitat Scroll of Honour Award, while expressing keen interest in Punjab’s ‘Apni Chhat, Apna Ghar’ housing scheme. Maryam Nawaz thanked the Omani minister for appreciating the initiative and briefed him on its key features, while also highlighting the ‘Apna Khet, Apna Rozgar’, ‘Apni Zameen, Apna Ghar’ and ‘Apni Chhat, Mehfooz Chhat’ initiatives. She said the disbursement of interest-free loans to more than 200,000 people for home construction within 18 months was an extraordinary achievement, adding that Rs260 billion had been disbursed under the scheme and installment recovery had also begun. She said more than 125,000 families had shifted to their own homes, while merit and transparency remained the distinguishing features of the programme and no recommendation was required to benefit from it. The chief minister said she aimed to build one million homes under ‘Apni Chhat, Apna Ghar’, but economic constraints remained a challenge, adding that the target of constructing 500,000 homes for low-income people would be achieved within five years. Maryam Nawaz said the scheme’s recovery rate was above 99 percent due to the affordable monthly installment of Rs14,000, while complete data from across Punjab had been compiled through the Punjab Socio-Economic Registry to assess housing needs. Dr Khalfan said the large Pakistani community in Oman was rendering valuable services and described Oman as a second home for Maryam Nawaz and every Pakistani. He said Oman had two housing loan models and provided housing grants to people earning less than $1,000, adding that loans were provided through the Oman Housing Bank. However, he described ‘Apni Chhat, Apna Ghar’ as a better initiative because it offered interest-free financing. Dr Khalfan said two separate departments were working on housing and urban development in Oman and that urban planning in Muscat was being carried out through integrated planning and sustainable strategies to support the city’s growing real estate industry. He said urban development was being pursued through economic and environmental planning while taking into account the needs of different communities and sectors, adding that Oman was focusing on smart housing while keeping future requirements in view. He also said Pakistani companies were rendering valuable services in Muscat’s real estate sector.