Bennett Oghifo
The Federal Government has renewed its drive to expand access to affordable housing, with about 430 staff members of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) becoming beneficiaries of a housing initiative under the Renewed Hope Housing Programme.
The Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Engr. Dr. Muttaqha Rabe Darma, disclosed this on Wednesday in Abuja at the presentation of houses to the beneficiaries, saying the government was working to ensure that Nigerian workers no longer spend between 40 and 60 per cent of their incomes on house rent.
Darma said the high cost of housing had placed considerable financial pressure on Nigerian families and could indirectly create incentives for corruption.
According to him, reducing the proportion of workers’ income spent on accommodation would ease the financial burden on families and enable them to meet other basic needs.
“We are going to assure that in this country workers don’t spend 40 to 60 per cent of their income on rent. At least, if we do that, we are reducing one dimension that needs to be addressed,” Darma said.
He said the Federal Government was working with stakeholders and regulators in the housing sector to significantly increase the number of affordable houses available to Nigerians.
The minister said the government was also taking steps to address the country’s housing deficit, which he put at about 16 million housing units.
Darma disclosed that the government was taking stock of abandoned housing projects across the country as part of efforts to increase the nation’s housing stock.
According to him, about 250,000 housing units in abandoned projects could potentially be recovered and made available to Nigerians, including civil servants.
“We are taking stock of them. We are taking statistics. We are moving to each and every state where we have these abandoned properties,” he said.
The minister explained that the Federal Government was engaging state governors on the possibility of taking over or acquiring some abandoned projects for allocation to civil servants and other Nigerians.
He also highlighted the high cost of land, building materials and infrastructure as some of the factors making home ownership difficult for many workers.
Darma said the government was therefore exploring various financing mechanisms, including access to the National Housing Fund and mortgage facilities, particularly for workers in the informal sector.
He further disclosed that the planned social housing programme would target communities across the country, including the 774 local government areas, with the aim of making affordable homes accessible to low- and middle-income Nigerians.
According to him, the government’s housing strategy would involve partnerships among federal institutions, state governments, mortgage institutions, developers and private investors.
The minister urged relevant agencies to move beyond speeches and focus on delivering tangible housing projects to Nigerians.
430 NMDPRA Staff Become Homeowners
Speaking at the ceremony, the Chief Executive of NMDPRA, Mallam Rabiu Abdullahi Umar, said the authority was committed to improving the welfare of its workforce through initiatives designed to enhance their productivity and wellbeing.
He said the housing initiative would provide greater security and stability for beneficiaries while strengthening their commitment to their duties.
Umar said staff welfare remained an important component of institutional performance, stressing that workers who had greater confidence in their personal and family future would be better positioned to contribute effectively to national development.
He commended the Federal Government, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) and other partners for supporting the housing initiative.
Also speaking, the President of the NMDPRA Staff Cooperative Society, Abdullahi Danladi Auta, described the allocation of houses to staff as a significant milestone.
Auta said about 430 members of the authority’s workforce would benefit from the initiative, with projects located in Abuja, Kano and Lagos.
He said the initiative would provide beneficiaries with affordable access to home ownership at a time when rising land prices, construction costs and other housing inputs had made home ownership increasingly difficult for workers.
Houses Delivered in Abuja, Kano, Lagos
The Chief Commercial Officer of Renewed Hope SPV Limited, Dare Makinde, said the first phase of the project would provide different categories of housing units to NMDPRA staff.
He said the houses included two-bedroom and three-bedroom flats, three-bedroom terraces with boys’ quarters, as well as other categories of houses across the different locations.
Makinde said 365 housing units were earmarked for Abuja, while additional units would be delivered in Kano and Lagos.
He disclosed that the second phase of the project would commence in the coming year.
The Managing Director of the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria, Shehu Usman Osidi, congratulated the beneficiaries and commended the collaboration among NMDPRA, the Renewed Hope Housing Programme and other stakeholders.
Osidi said the initiative demonstrated the importance of partnerships in expanding access to affordable housing and creating opportunities for workers to become homeowners.
The Renewed Hope Housing Programme remains one of the Federal Government’s major interventions aimed at expanding access to affordable housing and addressing the country’s housing deficit.