Lagos State Governor Babajide Sano-Olu said that at a simple interest rate of 6%, Lagos State was better committed to providing affordable housing to its crowded population than any other organisation, state or federal government.
Speaking at the 2021 Housing Summit held at the Sheraton Abuja Hotel the penultimate week, Sanu Ulu said his management has
It has commissioned 11 apartment complexes so far.
Represented by the Housing Commissioner, Hon Murov Akinplu Vatay, he said: “What I sell in Ebonyi for 30 million I sell in Igbogbo at 8.5 million. You pay 5 per cent and you pay the rest over the next nine years, but we don’t let you sell until you finish paying at an interest rate. Simple is 6 percent.
“I challenge any organization here in Nigeria, whether federal or state, that has been able to provide that.”
Regarding urban renewal plans, Sanwoolu said: “We are looking at a site where we have to think vertically in the next 20 years, we are looking at Singapore and Hong Kong models, and we have 50 hectares in Ijanikin so that the railway can evacuate people to the island” .
In the opening paper presented by the President of the Nigerian Institute of Real Estate Surveyors and Appraisers (NIESV), Emmanuel Okas Wake, he said that the country would need N24 trillion to bridge the current housing shortfall.
The NiESV chief lamented that previous efforts by the government to make homes available to the masses had failed because the private sectors were neglected.
He noted that although there are many unoccupied homes in the city, especially in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), the masses cannot afford them, and therefore still lack decent housing.
Wake stressed that private sector participation can help close the widening housing gap
Referring to recent comments by the Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, opposing speculation that the country’s housing deficit has reached 17 million units with an annual increase of 20 per cent, Wake revealed that the minister has commissioned some professionals to research and exit this matter. “With real, reliable, scientific, and verifiable data on the nation’s actual housing needs and suggestions on how to move forward.”
To address the country’s housing deficit, Wake proposed setting up the Housing Infrastructure Fund and encouraging the government to use local materials.
The Director General of the Federal Housing Authority, Senator Gbenga Ashafa, represented by the Director General of Procurement, Mr. Anitor Thomas also called for government cooperation with the private sector even as he emphasized that there should be a transition from cash and home ownership to the mortgage system as it is common in the developed world.
He also urged the government to look into the interest rates of banks adding that the prevailing rates are too high and unattractive to developers.
In his speech, the meeting’s organizer and CEO of Housing Circuit Limited, Seon Gigi, identified corruption as a major cause of the housing shortage.
In his remarks, “Corruption is endemic to the politics of the body, always affecting the housing chain and we are all to blame. The recent report by the International Criminal Police Commission (ICPC) about two civil servants said to have taken over 300 homes is a reflection of our moral decadence.
The event was attended by housing commissioners from different states, policy makers, professionals, real estate developers and enthusiasts.
Five event participants received various awards for their contributions in their various fields of the built industry.
Among the winners was the retired Surveyor General of the Federation (SGoF) Tyre. Taiwo Samuel Adeniran; Head of NIESV; Engineer Chika Felicitas Ebenebe, Regional Technical Chief, Globacom, Mina Region, Dr.
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