63 Bwiza) and the provincial centres like Gitega, Makamba, Muyinga, Bubanza, Mwaro and Bururi. In total, 2,443 plots will be available on the completion of the exercise. - Development Studies: These Studies seek to demarcate certain zones of Bujumbura and Bubanza. - In the short and medium terms it is intended to strengthen the current activities in order to broaden and diversify the access roads to the plots. - Restructuring of new zones: This concerns the carrying out initially of technical studies to establish new building plots and to thereby enable the low income populations to have access to registered and serviced plots. - Projects «regional branches». This project concerns the Provinces of Muyinga, Bubanza, Bururi and Mwaro and is aimed at the production of 2,000 plots mainly for residential use. Promotion of Housing Besides the persistent imbalance between the supply and demand of building plots, the high costs of house building and the inadequate financing mechanisms constitute major challenges for the fair promotion of housing. The housing deficit is estimated at 13,000 houses per year and constitutes the basis of an excessive increase in rents. The housing proponents have to deal with constraints linked to: - The lack of resources in the long term, - A demand which generally cannot be met due to the population’s low income, - The inefficiency of the mortgage system and - The absence of a clear housing policy. The alternatives advocated by the Government to solve this thorny issue of housing deficit relate to: - Encouraging the development of individual savings as a prerequisite to the acquisition of a plot, - Urging Provident institutions such as the INSS, the MFP and the Insurance Companies to be involved in the housing sector, - Fiscal motivation of the Bankers and private proponents, - The promotion of high rise buildings and - The mobilization of resources from abroad according to the modalities appropriate for housing promotion. The advocated programmes relate to: