Experts call for scalable solutions to meet rising housing demand

Disturbed by the current housing crisis with galloping affordability gap affecting mostly low income earners, emerging real estate market industry experts under the auspices of Association of Housing Corporations of Nigeria (AHCN), are calling for urgent scalable solutions to meet the rising housing demand of the people.

They also suggested brilliant solutions to enhance homeownership among Nigerians.

This was contained in a communique at the end of a two-day National workshop combined with 19th Annual General Meeting / 114th Council Meeting  held in Calabar, Cross Rivers State.

They bemoaned the increasing housing shortage and acute problem of housing availability, accessibility and affordability without corresponding to match the demand. They canvassed urgent collaboration among stakeholders with realistic strategies that will directly address the housing needs of the people and, at the same time, create and empower the people to reduce unemployment in the society.

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The event was, themed: ‘National Workshop on “Affordable Housing Solutions For Low Income Earners In Emerging Real Estate Markets”.

The communique was signed by the president/Chairman of Council, AHCN,  Eno Obogha and  Executive Secretary, Toye Eniola.

“The workshop observes that the traditional affordable housing programmes which often focus on reducing the selling price of housing units is no longer enough to address the scale of housing demand of the low and medium groups. The meeting, therefore, advocates for immediate adoption of innovative housing finance and industrialized housing construction models such as prefabricated housing, precast concrete system and modular construction with replicable and standardized designs for faster delivery and cost efficiency housing for the people, “ the communique read.

It observed that the current housing demand arising from rapid urbanisation, population growth, rising construction costs and financing constraints demand a fundamental shift from small scale interventions to large scale housing ecosystems and affordable housing deliver.

The experts called on government to establish National Housing Delivery Frameworks and Housing Infrastructure Funds that will set clear housing production targets and finance infrastructure for housing development to address scalable.

They also called members to rekindle the mass housing revolution of yesteryear, recalling golden era when housing corporations emerged as strategic institutions for housing delivery across many Nigerian states.

The delegates at the forum commended the Renewed Hope Housing Initiative of the current administration and urged the Federal Government to allot specific role to state housing corporations as government agencies created to deliver social and affordable housing to Nigerians in all the states of the federation.

They also bemoaned the current housing shortage particularly in Abuja and Lagos where unoccupied houses developed by private developers are unaffordable to the people who really need housing are wasting away without occupation in our major cities.

They called on all state governments to urgently provide needed support to their housing corporations in accessing seamless land banking and funding to address rising housing shortages for the low and medium income group.

“The meeting notes and condemns the recent practice of some state governments merging state housing corporations with ministries of housing or land as well usurping their statutory responsibilities which renders these housing agencies inactive over the years describing this practice as a violation of the National Housing Policy which by extension has widen housing deficit especially affordable housing for low and medium income group,” the communique read.

The workshop unveiled available funding windows with low interest rates for housing  development, urging state governments to support their state housing corporations to take advantage of the windows to unlock accessible opportunities to provide housing that will be affordable to the low and medium earners.

The delegates also admonished state housing agencies to embrace innovative ideas and creative partnership options to turn their challenges to opportunities in solving affordable housing in Nigeria.

Participants at the meeting called on all state governments to support their housing agencies with appropriate structural transformation to make them more vibrant to carry out their statutory responsibilities of providing affordable housing to Nigerians as enumerated in the National Housing Policy.