By: Tijani Salako.
The minister for housing and urban development Arch. Ahmed Musa Dangiwa has expressed major grief at the worsening housing shortage and sub-standard of existing housing conditions, added that over 70% of the estimated housing short fall of basic habitability standard
The minister expressed this thought at the Renewed Hope Housing Public Private Partnership (PPP) summit in Abuja, as the minister highlighted critical deficiencies, not limited to inadequate access to piped water, electricity, and sewage systems as he emphasized the urgent need for intervention to address the housing deficit and improve the quality of existing homes.
The minister in a statement said, “The Ministry is collaborating with the National Population Commission (NPC) to ensure that the next national census provides accurate housing data also the federal government recently launched a National Housing Data Infrastructure initiative, which aims to bring together key stakeholders such as the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN), the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)” he said.
Standard-Times Newspaper further learned that before the completion of this initiative, the Ministry would be working with an estimated housing shortfall of over 20 million units. Nigeria needs to construct at least 500,000 housing units annually for the next decade—an effort that requires over N5 trillion ($6.25 billion) in annual investment”, he added
Recognizing the enormity of the challenge, the government is leveraging Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) through the Renewed Hope Housing Programme and the National Urban Renewal and Slum Upgrade Programme to drive large-scale housing development.
Construction is currently underway on 6,612 units, including 3,112 in the Federal Capital Territory, 2,000 in Lagos, and 2,000 in Kano has the ministry, already partnered with a consortium of developers to deliver 100,000 housing units, with the first phase focusing on seven Renewed Hope Cities in Abuja, Lagos, Kano, Maiduguri, Enugu, Port Harcourt, and Nasarawa.
“These units, ranging from apartments to bungalows, primarily target upper-middle to high-income earners,” he stated.
Dangiwa also highlighted the importance of Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) in mobilizing private-sector funding and ensuring efficient project execution. He called for policy reforms to address regulatory bottlenecks and enhance affordability.
The minister’s comments were echoed by Olayemi Rotimi-Shodimu, the convener of the summit, who emphasized the need for collaboration among government agencies, private developers, financial institutions, and policymakers to achieve a common goal.
The two-day summit, held at the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Centre in Abuja, brought together stakeholders from across the housing sector to discuss solutions to Nigeria’s housing crisis.