By Emma Ujah, Abuja Bureau Chief

The Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria, FMBN, has approved housing loans totaling N121.224 billion to Nigerians to enable the build their own houses.

The Managing Director of the bank, Mr. Gimba Kumo, told media executives in Abuja, Friday, that N70.494 billion was approved through Estate Developers, while the balance of N 50 . 729 billion went through Primary Mortgage Banks.

He disclosed that a total 53 .518 housing units have been built with the N61.568 billion so far disbursed to beneficiaries of the loans portfolio.

Mr. Kumo said that his administration was targeting between 40, 000 and 100, 000 housing units in the next four years through an aggressive housing delivery scheme in order to significantly drive the programme of providing suitable accommodation for all members of the public.

“One of our immediate priorities is to finance the building of at least 40,000 to 100, 000 housing units in the next four years within the present financial framework of the bank.

“This can be doubled if we push through the desired reforms in the mortgage sector including land use reforms and other regulatory legal hindrances,” he said.

The MD said the bank which was established in 1956 had to be restructured into “a Federal Government-Sponsored Enterprise, FGSE, whose main function is secondary mortgage and capital market operations.

As an FGSE, the bank is expected to function as a government institution operating on the principles of a private enterprise driven by profit and efficiency with some sort of government backing in line with the modus operandi  of similar secondary mortgage institutions such as the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac of the United State.”