Bridging Nigeria’s 16.9m housing deficit requires synergy – Reps deputy speaker

The deputy speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, yesterday said it would take collective efforts of all stakeholders to bridge the 16.9 million deficit in the country. He said the House was willing to work with the stakeholders to meet people’s housing needs. He said this in his goodwill message as a special […]

The deputy speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, yesterday said it would take collective efforts of all stakeholders to bridge the 16.9 million deficit in the country.

He said the House was willing to work with the stakeholders to meet people’s housing needs.

He said this in his goodwill message as a special guest at the 17th Africa International Conference on Housing in Abuja.

Kalu, represented by his Chief of Staff, Toby Okechukwu, lamented the report of 16. 9 million housing deficit in Nigeria.

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He said the report placed Lagos, Ibadan, Kano, and Abuja as cities with 20 percent rise in housing needs yearly.

“This is a major problem as it has a negative impact on our economy and on the quality of life of our citizens.

“There are a number of factors that have contributed to the housing deficit in

Nigeria. These include rapid urbanisation, population growth and a lack of affordable housing finance.”

He said development of housing would be difficult without huge investments in key infrastructure like roads, urban planning, waste management and energy. 

Kalu said there was need for public-private-partnership in the housing sector to bridge the deficits.