New Telegraph

FG: 1.5m families to own low cost houses

  • 300,000 houses to be built

 

  • Project to cost over N400bn

 

The Federal Government has unveiled plans to meet the housing needs of about 1.5 million Nigerian families through a social housing scheme that will deliver about 300,000 housing units across the country.

 

The scheme, which is part of the National Economic Sustainability Plan NESP), would be providing mortgage loan guarantees to low income earners on low interest and collateral free basis.

 

The implementation of the social housing plan, estimated to cost over N400 billion, is expected to kick off next week as early sites for the housing projects have now been identified across the six geopolitical zones.

 

A member of the Economic Sustainability Committee (ESC) working on  the project, who confided in New Telegraph, said the committee has already approved the plan to ensure that the 1, 2 and 3 bedroom units cost as little as between N1.8 million and N2 million, while financial assistance would be available for Nigerians to pay the mortgage.

 

Muhammadu Buhari and the Federal Executive Council (FEC) had, last June, approved a N2.3 trillion Economic Stimulus package after the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo-led Economic Sustainability Committee had submitted its report.

 

The President then directed the Vice President to supervise the implementation of the plan alongside the ESC. Under the social housing programme of the ESP, there would also be Rentto- Own option.

 

 

This model has been designed by the current administration to resolve the challenges of the common man having a decent and affordable shelter in the country. “This social housing plan is unprecedented in scale and impact on the Nigerian economy with an expected generation of 1.8 million jobs and houses delivered to about 1.5 million Nigerian families.

 

“Already, sites for early start projects have been identified in all the six geopolitical zones in addition to the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

 

“The sites include those in Ekiti and Ogun in South- West, Enugu and Abia in South-East, Delta and Edo in South-south, Yobe and Bauchi in North-East, Kaduna and Katsina in North- West and Nasarawa and Plateau in North-Central. Sites have also been identified in Abuja,” our source said.

 

In a bid to kick start the social housing project, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has already committed to a N200 billion facility with about a five per cent guarantee by the Federz under the Federal Ministry of Finance.

 

implementing agency, Family Homes Fund Ltd., an agency under the Federal Ministry of Finance, has already mobilized thousands of cooperative groups across the country that will participate in the social housing plan as main warehouse agents and mobilize low income buyers. For instance, FHF met recently with 93 Cooperative Leaders from the six geographical zones, under the aegis of the Co-Operatives Federation of Nigeria.

 

Under the 300,000 houses projects, massive local production is envisaged, especially in the area of local building materials. New Telegraph gathered that each of the building sites would operate as a factory with the production of housing inputs such as doors, windows, hinges, frames, cement, paints and other things going on at the sites.

 

About 1.5 million doors, 1.8 million windows and 7.8 million hinges would be needed during the project. At least 400 houses would be built in each of the 774 LGAs in the country. The ESC is also said to be working with state governments to identify land for the houses.

 

 

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