1 million housing units needed to bridge deficit- FG

President Muhammadu Buhari has disclosed that Nigeria required one million housing units  annually to reduce its current housing deficit of about 17 million in order to avert housing crisis by the year 2020. He said this last week in Abuja during the Shelter Afrique 35th Annual General Meeting (AGM) and Symposium. Represented by the FCT […]

President Muhammadu Buhari has disclosed that Nigeria required one million housing units  annually to reduce its current housing deficit of about 17 million in order to avert housing crisis by the year 2020.
He said this last week in Abuja during the Shelter Afrique 35th Annual General Meeting (AGM) and Symposium.
Represented by the FCT Minister, Malam Muhammad Musa Bello, Buhari said the federal government has earmarked N40 billion in the 2016 capital budget to implement a comprehensive housing programme in the country.
“Government intends to directly supply housing stocks in urban areas across all the geo-political zones under its Comprehensive Housing Programme. We would also continue to prosecute overall housing policy stand which recognizes the government as active facilitator of private sector-driven housing sector” he said.
He noted that the federal government is considering vibrant reforms in land administration, urban planning/renewal and mortgage housing finance under its new comprehensive housing programme to improve housing delivery in Nigeria.
The president said that the current realties of housing shortfall, challenges housing developers in Nigeria and Africa as a whole to re-assess their strategies and evolve fresh methodologies to meet the exigencies of these times.
While  urging  the participants to evolve strategies that would assist national governments across the continent to develop robust systems to deliver affordable housing to the low income on a sustainable basis, he called on Shelter Afrique and other development partners to invest more in the Nigeria housing sector to deepen the vibrancy of the country’s housing market.
The Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Shelter Afrique, Mr. James Mugerwa said that the organization has invested 50 million USD in the sector and has created 30 million construction workers across the continent.