The Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Ahmed Dangiwa in an address lamented that “It is disheartening to know that the housing finance development agencies have been performing suboptimally”.
If you look at FHA for example, he reiterated, it is an agency that is expected to provide houses for all segments of society, including low-income, middle-income, and high-income. They have received tremendous support from the government to carry out their mandate”.
He therefore scored the Federal Housing Authority and Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria low in their performance.
He stated this recently in Abuja during the recent inauguration of four Reform Task Teams, to develop a roadmap for the construction of over 50,000 houses annually across the country.
He expressed disappointment at the country’s housing development finance agencies’ underperformance.
“On each occasion that the Federal Capital Territory Administration opens new districts in Abuja, a large portion of land is always reserved for the authority. When they request land from the state government, they are always obliged. And for this, there is no reason why they should not be able to build houses in large numbers. They also have options to approach the capital market for housing development.
“The FMBN is expected to lead mortgage financing in the country. They should meet the needs of Nigerians for easy access to mortgages. They should also explore capital markets, but their performance leaves much to be desired. Our reforms will, therefore, be very comprehensive.’’
On the newly inaugurated committees, the minister noted that the teams comprising highly qualified and experienced professionals would provide lasting solutions to unlock the massive potential of the sector for catalysing inclusive economic growth.
The newly inaugurated four Reform Task Teams are the Housing Institutions Reform Task Team, the Multi-Agency Project Delivery Team, the Land Reform Task Team, and the Building Materials Manufacturing Hubs Task Team.
He urged them to deliver their recommendations within eight weeks.
Dangiwa said the teams would conduct a thorough review and facilitation of necessary legislative amendments of relevant housing industry laws, including the National Housing Fund Act,1992; Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria Establishment Act, 1993; Federal Housing Authority Act,1973; and PenCom Act to allow for increased investment in housing.