BY Patience Chat
In line with the renewed drive to increase the delivery of affordable housing to Federal Government workers, over 3,560 homes will be delivered under phases I and II of the National Affordable Housing Delivery Programme.
The programme promoted by the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) in partnership with the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Trade Union Congress (TUC) and the Nigerian Employers Consultative Association (NECA) is aimed at delivering decent, safe and quality housing for workers at affordable prices.
According to a statement by Mrs. Timan Elayo, who is FMBN’s Group Head of Corporate Communications, plans are currently in progress to commission 1,071 houses which have been completed in different project sites nationwide.
It further explained that the house types are based on proven social housing models, including one-bedroom, two-bedroom and three-bedroom units, with prices ranging from N3.1 to N8.3 million.
The Joint Implementation Committee of the Programme, comprising of NLC, TUC and NECA has approved the commissioning exercise in eight states, namely 100 housing units each in Akure, Ondo State, Yola, Adamawa State, Sokoto, Sokoto State and Lokoja, Kogi State; 315 housing units in Katsina; 90 housing units in Abakaliki, Ebonyi State; 180 housing units in Damaturu, Yobe State; 86 housing units in Maiduguri, Borno State.
In his remarks, the FMBN Managing Director, Mr. Hamman Madu, expressed delight with the completion of the first batch of the housing units, applauding the labour centres for their cooperation and support for the programme.
Madu also commended the collaborative spirit that has been fostered, which has given room for labour leaders and NECA to understand the realities and financial challenges that workers face, while making constructive inputs to the housing designs, pricing and other relevant conditions for delivering the project.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, has said that the government’s backing of the Federal Integrated Staff Housing (FISH) Programme was aimed at boosting civil servants’ welfare needs in terms of housing for effective service delivery.
Fashola, who spoke at the groundbreaking ceremony of 116 housing units under the FISH Housing Programme in Gwagwalada Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), described civil servants as a critical component of development for any nation. The Minister added that it is for this reason that the administration is paying special attention to their conditions and standards of living.
He further listed other programmes that have been set up to benefit civil servants, such as the Federal Government’s support for states to clear their salaries liabilities; civil servants’ salary review; pension reforms, and the removal of equity contribution for civil servants on FMBN’s housing loans that are worth lower than N5 million.
The minister, therefore, commended the leadership of the Ministry’s Public Building and Housing Directorate for their commitment in securing the land and the development of the site’s master plan and infrastructure that would enable private developers’ interest for investment in the sector.
Similarly, Madu assured Gwagwalada Area Council, a host community of the government’s continued support in developing the area. He cited the recent tax credit policy investment on infrastructure, and the Abaji-Lokoja road as examples of government-supported projects.
Earlier, the Head of Service of the Federation, Dr. Folashade Yemi Esan, thanked the minister for providing the expansive land in a prime area that spans over five hectares for the construction of housing units.
She emphasized that the houses will alleviate the suffering of civil servants, describing the groundbreaking event as a watershed moment in accelerating the attainment of the government’s agenda of ensuring the welfare of civil servants through the provision of affordable housing.
According to her, the FISH programme was conceptualized as a vehicle to address the current housing deficit faced by civil servants in Nigeria.