… targets 300,000 units annually, 1.8m jobs

By Emmanuel Elebeke

The Federal government yesterday unveiled a prototype of its Mass Housing Scheme at Model House, Dei Dei, FCT, Abuja.

The initiative is to build 300,000 housing units annually as a response to challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, under the Economic Sustainability Plan.

Unveiling the house, the managing director of the developer, Family Home Fund, Mr Kemi Shiduade said the move was a demonstration of federal government’s commitment to lifting the poor segment of our population out of poverty.

According to him, each of the houses cost N1.4m and N1.8m for the 1 bedroom and 2 bedroom units respectively but exclude financing and infrastructure costs.

Recall that President Mohammadu Buhari in July this year approved an Economic Sustainability Plan with two dimensions, after which Family Homes Finds was appointed to implement that plan.

The target is to build 300,000 housing units annually as a response to challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, under the Economic Sustainability Plan and to create about 1.8 million jobs and to patronize local manufacturers of building materials as well as local builders.

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‘‘What we are doing today is to launch initial steps towards fulfilling that mandate which is an important step. The aim is to work towards stimulating the Nigerian the economy and two was to address the significant needs of Nigerians who would have been disproportionately affected by the pandemic.

‘‘One of the key elements of that Economic Sustainability Plan is Mass Housing. And the mass housing programme provides over 300,000 homes priced as low as N2 million.

‘‘We needed to prove to our customers that it is possible, to build a house that decent for N2m. Having done this, we will now go on to build hundreds of houses across the 36 states of the federation and the FCT,’’ said Shiduade.

On impact, Shiduade said ‘‘it has a significant impact, we expect that this project will create about 1.8million jobs. People who will have the opportunity to participate in the project would earn a minimum of N75,000 a month as labourers.

There are lots money that will be going into peoples’ pockets with spin-off effects, as well as enterprises springing up.

‘‘We are also looking at 90% of materials to be used manufactured locally as can be seen in the constructed house, they will go and employ more workers and this will have a significant effect on the economy. The impact on the quality of life will be enormous, people who share apartment will now have opportunity to own their own homes and this will improve health standard and enhance educational chances for their children and overall quality of lives in the country.

‘‘That is precisely the focus of the President as he had promised that he will lift about 100 million Nigerians out of poverty. This is going to be a major step towards doing that.’’

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On transparency, he said ‘‘we are deploying technology which we did not have before in terms of selection and the online portal launched will help us trace which house is going to who.

‘‘Again, we are working with cooperative because we believe there is safety in numbers. A lot of allocations will be done through the cooperatives. I can assure you that this will end up in the hands of people who need them most.’’

On the qualification criteria, the MD said applicants must be Nigerians who can afford it and it is not for people who have house elsewhere, at least those who earn up to 30,000 every month.

In his goodwill message, the President of the Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria (REDAN), Dr. Aliyu Wanakko said the initiative will lead to increase in the national housing stock and reduce Nigeria’s housing deficit.

He described the initiative as no mean feat, as it represents the 1st major intervention in housing development in the past decades.

‘‘This programme, we believe will lead to increase in the national housing stock and reduce Nigeria’s housing deficit. In addition, it will create massive employment for the citizenry, as housing is not just about shelter provision, but a veritable tool for economic development. This is really applaudable as the beneficiaries of this housing scheme are those in the lower financial income bracket who need the houses most.

‘‘The model will enable the participating stakeholders to have a firsthand view of the scheme. Beyond the NSHP, we commend the FHFL for her interest in charting a course of collaboration with critical stakeholders in affordable housing, as they are our strong allies in the REDAN Rural-Urban Housing Initiative to build at least 100 housing units in each of the 774 Local Government of Nigeria including the FCT, where viable and feasible to enable Nigerians own homes in places of their choice.

‘‘These giant strides by the FHFL is enhancing the organization in achieving its mandate of providing homes for Nigerians thereby justifying the essence of their establishment by the Federal Government as a Housing Interventionist Agency’’ he said.

Wamakko also affirmed to governments at all levels that the Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria (REDAN) being the principal agency and umbrella body of the organized real estate sector (public and private) with over 2,300 registered corporate firms as members nationwide is ever ready to partner with governments at all levels for the development of mass and affordable housing.

He, however, called on the government to chart policies that will create an enabling environment for us to collectively increase the stock of housing and significantly decrease the housing deficit.

Vanguard News Nigeria