on the political color of an administration, but that she wants it to grow to become a structural and sustainable national policy. The head of state explained that her administration consciously opts for a long term vision where each Surinamese citizens has access to affordable housing. She pointed out that her involvement in the housing issue started at a young age as her mother who worked as a social worker for Stichting Volkshuisvesting regularly took her along when she visited families with housing problems. Her mother always told her that each human must have a house. Those words formed the basis for her political efforts when it came to addressing the housing issue. That involvement led to the 2019 National Housing Fund Act which was aimed at preventing housing projects from becoming dependent on the priorities of each administration. The head of state explained that previous housing initiatives often started with good intentions but eventually either went silent or produced insufficient results. “It is not a matter of building a few houses and stopping. We want a fundamental program that will still exist after 15 to 20 years”, said president Simons. The president warned the nation not too have high expectations. Although thousands of Surinamese citizens have already applied for a house, it will be impossible to meet all of these demands in a short period. Every day president Simons receives messages from citizens who want to know when they can get a house. She urged the people to remain realistic. “We will not build ten thousand houses in three months. Even if the funds were to be available, the building capacity is not. The nation must see the current project as the start of something that is much bigger.”