By Chris Ochayi

The Programme Manager of the United Nations Habitat in Nigeria, Professor Johnson Bade Falade has disclosed that a total of 71 million Nigerians are currently living in slums.

Prof. Falade who revealed this while speaking at the National Conference on Shelter and Urban Renewal organised by the Daily Trust Newspapers in collaboration with the Legend Leaders in Abuja last week, also put the figure of current housing accommodation shortage in the country at 16 million housing units.

The themed of the conference which was organised in commemoration of the 2011World Habitat Day celebration was “Mass Housing & Urban Renewal: Imperative of Public Private Partnership”.

Professor Falade who noted that a general overview of the existing housing situation painted a bleak and gloomy picture that is not well for Nigeria, added, that “the total population of Nigeria of 140 million is rapidly urbanising, with 49.8 per cent urban population while those living in rural are 50.2 per cent, and the majority of the people are not well housed”.

The statistics according to him showed that, low figure for GDP per capital income of $1,154 and a high percent of the population that is poor, of which 54 per cent is said to be the population figure living below one dollar per day.

He said, “share of income and consumption held by the poorest 20 per cent which is said to be currently 54 per cent of the total population is 5.13 per cent. Occupancy ration which is currently six persons per room for extended family is very high.”

He pointed out that while access to adequate shelter is estimated at 40 per cent of the total population, home ownership in Nigeria is less than 25 per cent as compared with 75 per cent international benchmarks, even as approximately 90% of urban housing is provided by private developers.

Proposing a way forward in the housing sector, Falade said there is need for political commitment to housing at the national level, state and local governments, stressing that all political parties need to be committed to housing delivery and make this the cornerstone of their political manifestos.

“If any political party is not seen to be realistically committed to housing of the masses, people should not vote for it. It is gratifying to note that the present administration is rethinking its strategy to give housing the pride of place it deserves. For instance, both the Vision 202020 and the Financial System Strategy 2020 have assigned special roles to the housing sector, expecting it to drive the financial system and contribute not less than 20 per cent to the GDP by the year 2020”, he stated.

He warned that, “the ministry in charge of housing and urban development at the federal level must be allowed to discharge its statutory role unhindered as part of this political commitment.”

Meanwhile, former Head of Interim National Government, Chief Earnest Shonekan has challenged the Federal Government and the stakeholders in the housing sector to develop a national housing policy that will encourage the delivery of mass housing for the citizenry through the Private Public Partnership, PPP, scheme.

Chief Shonekan who gave the challenge while delivering a speech at the World Habitat Day regretted that the challenges of housing in Nigeria have been with us for a long time. He said mass housing provision can become an important contribution to national economic development, job creation, skill development, industrialization and give rise to new asset classes and prosperity for all Nigerians

According to him, “the challenges of housing in Nigeria have been with us for a long time. Our shelter/ housing problems are most pronounced in our urban areas where it takes significant qualitative and quantitative dimension”.

The Chairman of Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission, ICRC, stressed further that “the rapid urbanization and explosive population growth are twin problems, which in combination results in the serious housing deficit we are experiencing in Nigeria”.

Chief Shonekan who was the Chairman of the conference said that government should create win win alliances with the private developers to develop affordable housing estates through Public-Private Partnership (PPP), and associated infrastructure, citing a recently signed PPP contract between the FCT and Deanshanger projects for primary and secondary infrastructure development in the Katampe district of Abuja as a good example of PPP partnership.

He said “it is my prayer that the Federal Capital Territory and Federal Housing Authority will work further with the ICRC to develop public private partnerships for the urgent provision of affordable mass housing in Katampe and other districts of the FCT. The ICRC is willing and able to play a catalyzing role in facilitating this mass housing provision thrust”, Shonekan noted.

In his address, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Senator Bala Mohammed said the present FCT administration has concluded plans to articulate policies that will encourage massive inflow of private sector investment into the housing sector.

Mohammed added that the move, aimed to increase the housing stock in the city and the Territory, will ameliorate the current demand for housing. He said the FCT administration has since inception of the civilian administration, pursued with mixed success a PPP scheme in Abuja, under which private developers are allocated parcels of land under generous conditions, to undertake mass housing development in Abuja for sale to members of the public.

The current FCT administration he said has commenced the enforcement of the extant guidelines for access to land by developers for mass housing scheme in Abuja, in order to ensure that serious developers with requisite legal, technical and financial capacities, and can deliver on their stated objectives, are allocated land under the scheme.

In her remarks, the Minister of Lands, Housing and Urban Development, Ms. Amal Pepple expressed concerns over the critical housing situation in the country, saying one of the major concerns in the housing sector is the fact that most of the people live in sub-standard housing environment with dilapidated houses and poor infrastructure.

According to her, “the provision and management of the necessary infrastructure have become a daunting challenge in our collective effort toward effective and affordable mass housing delivery in Nigeria. This is especially so when we consider that the cost of infrastructure could account for more than 30 per cent of the cost of an estate development with the attendant prohibitive effect on the price of a housing unit”.

Ms. Pepple however, assured that the ministry is focusing on the creation of an enabling environment for the citizens to be able to purchase affordable houses of their choice, based on their income.