From Isaac Anumihe, Abuja
Minister of Housing and Urban Development Architect Ahmed Musa Dangiwa has disclosed that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu approved N126.5 billion to deliver a total of 100,000 houses nationwide in 18 months.
Speaking at the launch of Renewed Hope Cities and Estates and groundbreaking for 3,112 housing units in Karsana, in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Dangiwa said that the project is the pilot under a Public Private Partnership (PPP) between the Federal Ministry of Housing and Urban Development and a consortium of developers comprising Continental Civil and General Construction and Ceezali Limited signed in December 2023.
“Under this PPP arrangement, the ministry is creating the enabling environment and facilitating off takers for the houses through the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) while the developers will source for land and finance the construction. By encouraging this PPP arrangements, we are taking the financial burden off government while meeting our citizens’ needs for decent and quality shelter.
“We chose to start in the Federal Capital Territory because it is the heart of the nation. We are also impressed that the Minister of FCT, Nyesom Wike, is committed to the Renewed Hope Agenda and understands the importance of housing and access roads to residents and is taking steps to improve infrastructure in the FCT,” he said
According to him, in the first quarter of this year, the federal government would undertake a groundbreaking of a total of 6,000 housing units.
“This includes 2,500 Renewed Hope City housing units at the Ibeju-Lekki Coastal City, Lagos; the development of a 500-housing unit Renewed Hope Estate in Kano and 250 housing units in 12 states (two per geopolitical zone) as Renewed Hope Estates. This amounts to 6,000 housing units under the 2023 Supplementary Budget.
“From the ministry’s 2024 approved budget, we are also rolling out another batch of Renewed Hope Estates comprising 250-housing units each in six additional states totalling 1,500 housing units” he said.
In his remarks, the president, Bola Ahmed Tinubu noted that the project will be subsidised by the federal government where out of the 1,500 housing units to be funded by Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN), 400 will be sold at concessionary rates to low and medium income Nigerians who are members of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC). This is because my administration believes that every Nigerian deserves to have access to shelter that is affordable and adequate,” he said.
To this effect, he directed the Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, and the Minister of Works, David Nweze Umahi, to provide access roads to all Renewed Hope Cities and Estates across the country.
“Our goal is to increase the sense of togetherness, improve health and productivity of our citizens and reduce pressure on city centres. On this note, I am today directing the Minister of Federal Capital Territory and the Minister of Works to provide access roads to all Renewed Hope Cities and Estates Projects to increase accessibility and liveability starting with this site in Karsana,” Tinubu noted.
The president stated that beyond the moral imperative of providing decent and affordable housing for citizens, his administration also recognises the immense potential of housing as a catalyst for inclusive economic growth.
“It is with this understanding that we have classified housing as essential social infrastructure and made it a major priority area towards delivering economic growth and job creation. At 25 direct and indirect jobs per house, the 20,000 housing units planned for the Federal Capital Territory alone will create 500,000 jobs,” he stated