Strategise with Reps to fix Nigeria’s Housing Challenges, Kalu urges stakeholders
..decries report of 16.9 million nation’s housing deficit
By Tom Okpe
Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rep Benjamin Kalu has called for collective effort of all stakeholders in the Housing sector to fix the inherent challenges, one of the massive deficit units.
He said the 10th House was willing to work with stakeholders to meet the people’s housing needs.
In his goodwill message as a special guest at the 17th Africa International Conference on Housing in Abuja on Monday, Kalu, represented by his Chief of Staff, Toby Okechukwu said the report placed Lagos, Ibadan, Kano, and Abuja as cities that have 20 percent rise in housing needs yearly.
He said: “I would like to start with a look at the current state of housing in Nigeria. As you know, it is self evident that we have a huge housing deficit presently in Nigeria.
“According to a study by researchers at the African Development Bank in the ‘Housing Market Dynamics in Africa’, there is a Housing deficit of up to 16.9 million units. According to the World Bank, Lagos, Ibadan, Kano, and Abuja, has a 20 percent rise in Housing needs yearly.
“Current total output in the formal Housing sector is estimated at no more than 100,000 units. While well corroborated data does not exist, it is clear that the formal sector is only producing a fraction of the total number of urban units needed each year.
“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 number of factors that have contributed to Housing deficit in
Nigeria. These include rapid urbanization, population growth, and a lack of affordable Housing finance.
“The Housing deficit in Nigeria is a major challenge that needs to be addressed. The 10th House of Representatives, led by the Speaker, Rep Tajudeen Abbas, is committed to working with stakeholders to find a final
solution.
“The 10th House of Representatives is willing and able to partner with stakeholders to enable Nigerians benefit from an improved Housing Sector.
“We are willing, when approached by stakeholder inputs to expend our legislative powers to fixing Nigeria’s Housing sector challenges. It must also be stated that the development of Housing would be difficult without huge investments in key infrastructure like roads, urban planning, waste management, and energy.
“We urge you to approach the House with your ideas and actionable plans for a better Housing Sector. We need your inputs to ensure that the Housing sector in Nigeria delivers on its promise to provide Housing for all.
“Specifically, we encourage you to propose ideas on how to make it easier to access affordable Housing finance; invest in infrastructure to make it easier to build and develop new Housing units; promote public-private partnerships, (PPPs) to bring together the resources of the government and the private sector to address the Housing deficit.
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“We believe that your ideas will be valuable in helping the executive, led by President Ahmed Bola Tinubu and the National Assembly to develop a comprehensive plan to address the Housing deficit in Nigeria.”
Expressing his displeasure with the mortgage system that had apparently made it difficult for the common man to own a house; and the divergent views of Nigerians on the land use act, Kalu said the lawmakers still had a duty of enacting impactful Housing for all.
