By Kingsley Adegboye

For Nigeria to have sustainable buildings, the use of trained professionals and standard building materials need to be considered. This view was canvassed by a former Special Assistant to President Goodluck Jonathan on the Millennium Development Goals, Hajiya Amina Az Zubair at the 6th Dr. Newton Jibunoh Lecture jointly put together by the Nigerian Institute of Building, NIOB and Dolphin Works Limited.

From left: Oba Tejuosho, Chief Jibunoh and Chucks Omeife, First Vice President, NIOB

She stressed the need to engage the services of professional builders in building projects in the country to avoid structural failures and collapse of buildings.

Hajia Az Zubair who was represented by Mr. Wole Edu, an official in the Millennium Development Goals Office also made a case for technology transfer to develop the country. This way, Nigeria will be at par with other developed countries. With this, buildings will become sustainable to serve as a tool driving investment”, she said.

NIOB President, Mr. Dachollom Jambol said the institute is driven by the passion to provide professional excellence and leadership for sustainable shelter.

According to him, the National Building Code which was passed into law in 2006 has tasked the builders with the responsibility of the management of the production of buildings and the supervision of artisans and craftsmen. NIOB in collaboration with its regulatory body, the Council of Registered Builders of Nigeria, CORBON, he said, has continued to intensify efforts on the training and retraining of builders throughout the nation to ensure their competence and proficiency in the execution of their mandate.

He was elated that no known case of collapsed building has been traced to a professional builder. “This is our contract with Nigerians. We advise that anyone who wishes to avoid the collapse of his or her building to engage the professional builder”, he said.

Oba Adedapo Tejuosho, the Osile Oke-Ona Egbaland, who chaired the lecture said buildings and properties, like all other investment tools, need to be handled wisely. Oba Tejuosho added that all decisions made by Nigerians concerning buildings and properties have implications for national and infrastructure development.

The event did not end without due reference to the man behind the vision and in whose honour the lecture was packaged, Dr. Newton Jibunoh, founder, Fight Against Desert Encroachment, FADE.