THURSDAY JUNE 2, 2016 • T H I S D AY
57
NEWSEXTRA
Buhari: Nigeria Needs 1m Units Annually to Avert Looming Housing Crisis Says N40bn budgeted in 2016 to build new houses Fashola outlines plans to deliver new homes to Nigerians
Chineme Okafor in Abuja President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday said Nigeria risked a huge housing crisis in the next four years, which is by the year 2020, if she does not build at least one million units of houses for her citizens every year. Buhari said this when he declared open the 35th Annual General Meeting (AGM) and international symposium of Shelter Afrique in Abuja, adding that unless the country consciously builds this number of houses annually, hopes of her cutting a nationally acclaimed housing deficit of 17 million would also be an illusion. His warning coincided with disclosure by the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, at the event that a new plan to improve access to new homes by Nigerians has been drawn up by his ministry. The president who spoke through his minister for the Federal Capital Territory (FCT),Mr. Mohammed Bello, stated that his government has begun to design policies that would help him and private operators build more houses for Nigerians. He explained that parts of such policies are contained in a new national housing development programme which when implemented guarantee low and middle income earning Nigerians access to houses through mortgages and other off-take arrangements.
The president also disclosed that as part of ways to kick-start government’s plan to strategically intervene in the country’s housing sector, N40 billion was earmarked in the 2016 budget for the housing sector. “Ours is an administration driven by robust convictions and relentless zeal to deploy available resources into key sectors of the economy to place Nigeria back on the path of continuous growth and development. “We are therefore very much convinced of the catalytic development potentials of the housing sector and have accordingly earmarked about N40 billion in the 2016 capital budget to implement a comprehensive programmed for housing development,” said Buhari said. He added: “Nigeria with a population of about 170 million people and annual population growth rate of 3.5 per cent requires a minimum of additional one million housing units per annum to reduce the much acclaimed national deficit of about 17 million housing units in order to avert a housing crisis by the year 2020.” Similarly, Fashola in his remarks, outlined what he described as the plan which he would use to deliver sustainable homes to Nigerians. He said his ministry had embarked on proper planning to establish the real housing demands of majority of Nigerians, adding that such first steps were key
to completing housing projects; controlling costs and reducing requests variations as the case may be. He said while there was an existing housing plan which he met on ground, its contents were however not really proactive but expressive. “We must never get tire to explain the necessity and importance of proper planning. It is the key to successful execution, it is the key to project completion, it is the key to cost control and reduction in variation requests and financial calculations. “I acknowledge that there is, for example, a national housing policy of 2012. Some have chosen to call it a plan. To the extent that it is a broad statement of intent about providing housing, it is a policy statement,” Fashola said. With regards to an active housing
plan, the minister explained what his ministry was working on, saying it was, “a clear understanding of who we want to provide housing for.” He said: “I recognise that there are people who want land to build for themselves, there are also people who want town houses and duplexes, whether detached or semi-detached. “The people who we must focus on are those in the majority and those who are most vulnerable; the people who are in the bracket of those who graduated from universities about five years ago and more. “People who are in the income bracket of grade level 9 to 15 in the public service and their counterparts, taxi drivers, market men and women, farmers, artisans who earn the same range of income.”
Fashola said in order to capture the target population, the ministry needed to conduct a survey to determine what they expect and what they could pay as well as evolve agreeable housing types, between two to four designs that have a broad, national cultural acceptance. He also said the plan requires standardisation of various accessories used in housing project so that small and medium enterprises in the country would be able to, “respond to supply all the building materials, create diversification and jobs and ensure that projects are completed with a steady supply of materials.” Other requirements in the plan, Fashola said, included ensuring that the designs reflect behavioral patterns of Nigerians, such as adequate storage, and other lifestyle needs amongs others.
According to him, the plans also include ensuring that the process of issuing legal titles to builders and owners is in place immediately as well as systemic focus on postconstruction maintenance to ensure that the houses remain in good condition after they have been sold to the owners. He equally disclosed that 12 state governments have responded to the request for land to build houses, and that the secured lands would be surveyed by the ministry preparatory to commencing their development. “I know that there is a high expectancy out there. But everything tells me that as desirous as speed is, for us to respond to people’s expectations, we must be careful not to build roads that go nowhere; instead, we must be meticulous, focused and dedicated to build a road to prosperity,” he said.
Four Years after Dana Air Crash, Families of Victims Demand Release of Accident Report, Compensation Dele Ogbodo in Abuja Four years after the Dana plane which departed Abuja crashed in Lagos, families of the 153 victims, yesterday demanded the immediate release of the final report of the accident investigation by government. Addressing a cross section of the media in Abuja, the leader of families of victims of the crash, Mr. Paul Okwulehie, who lost his wife and two other relatives also demanded a prompt and complete payment of compensation to the families of victims. Mr. Okechukwu Obi, who also lost the wife, Chinwe Obi, a staff of the National Universities Commission (NUC), said, it had been tales of sad and bitter experience from Dana’s lawyers since the demise of his wife in that crash. Obi said: “I have gone through so many demands with my lawyer on documents I have to present to them. I have been doing that since 2012. “The last request they made from me was that the lawyers of the Dana Airline are requesting for tax clearance certificate from a civil servant, which is not an issue to civil servants except business people. “The other nagging issue is they the said I should bring bank statements for the past three years from the period of her death.
Though, I told them that was not possible but we have written to the bank and they have agreed to issue me that.” So far, Obi confirmed that only 30 per cent of the compensation had been paid, while he is still in a fix about the remaining 70 per cent. “I do not know what the position is. It is a case between our lawyer and the Dana Airline lawyers.” he said. Corroborating Obi, Okwulehie said many others were experiencing hell, unnecessary demands and time wasting, from the management of Dana airline. He said: “Some of them (families of victims) are not speaking about what they pass through because the whole issue of compensation is adding insult to injury, an injury that is so deep. What you have heard reflects the case in nearly all the situations. “The issue of compensation for nearly all of them that are not here has been a very frustrating experience. They are asking for tax clearances, bank statements and all kinds of multiple configurations of demands.” As a step to addressing aviation safety in the country, the families, while launching the Safer Sky Foundation (SSF) and a website for victims of all crashes, said the objective of the foundation was to generate intense discussion on safe travels in the country.
KADUNA-ABUJA BY RAIL
Minister ofTransportation Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi (middle), with the Managing Director, China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation Ltd. (CCECC) Jack Li (left); and Acting Managing Director of the Nigerian Railway Corporation, Mr. Fidel Okhiria, during the test run of the newly built rail line from Abuja toKaduna...yesterday
Ovia: Why We SoldVisafone to MTN Dele Ogbodo in Abuja The Chairman, Zenith Bank Plc, who is also the founder Jim Ovia Foundation, Mr. Jim Ovia, yesterday attributed the lack of efficient broadband required for speedy telecommunications service as one of the reasons Visafone was sold to South African telecommunications firm, MTN. He did not however disclose how much the outfit was sold to MTN. Speaking at the Digital Africa conference and exhibition 2016 organised by Digital Africa Global Consult in Abuja, Ovia stressed that without adequate technology infrastructure to power constant connectivity, Internet of Things (IoTs) would be difficult to achieve. He said: “We have a lot of devices some of which will be dead equipment. Connectivity is very important and without it, internet of things or internet of everything cannot take place. I wouldn’t say that connectivity
is the most important thing, but it is extremely very important. “In some of this connectivity you need it by way of broadband or by way of fibre optics to give you the broadband or may be a wireless. Or may be the spectrum of between 700-800 MGHz that gives you the broadband speed that you need today, and so you can now understand why Visafone eventually sold its network to MTN.” According to him, the reason there were so many complaints was because of the resource availability that Visafone had, which had to do with the broadband, he added. He said policymakers must ensure that Nigeria is not left behind in the technological development of the future, adding that during the great industrial revolution, Africa was left behind. Ovia added that the present technology that enables economy to flourish is so pervasive that nobody can be restricted as students can now have access to information like their counterparts in South
Africa, Russia and other places in the world. In his remark, the Minister of Communications Technology, Mr. Adebayo Shittu, who was represented by the Director of Information and Communications Technology (ICT), Mrs. Moni Udorh, said the administration would not fail in using ICT to drive the economy. The minister said: “We have been doing everything possible in this direction. If we continue on this path, ICT should be contributing between 20 and 30 percent to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in few years’ time. We will strive to make it happen.” On government’s plan to establish an ICT University, he said: “We also have plans to create ICT-focused university. We have discovered that many of the youths lack requisite skills to compete in the international market. The university will bridge the skills gap.” While making his contribution, the Chairman of Digital Africa
Consult, Mr. Evans Woherem, said since inception of the annual event in 2013, global ICT experts have been provided a platform in the annual event to highlight the avalanche of challenges inhibiting Africa’s efforts at embracing evolving technologies and proffer solutions on how to get out of this digital doldrums. He said: “The conference provides access to a captive audience eager to understand where the consumer ecosystem currently is, and where the opportunities lie. Also, it is an important platform to network, share knowledge on the latest developments in the technology ecosystem, do business, and sign deals.” According to him, the 2016 edition has as its theme accelerating Africa’s Development through Internet of Everything (IoE). He added that suddenly, the Internet of Things or Internet of Everything has become the revolutionary technology trend in the world today.