The Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN), the countrys flagship mortgage institution, recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria (REDAN) and Shelter Afrique that is intended to expand and improve the nations housing sector. By the provisions of the agreement, the partners will provide $200 million annually for the next 10 years to finance housing construction in Nigeria.The project is a brain child of the Ag. Managing Director of FMBN, Mr. Richard Esin, whose leadership drive is approaching the issue of housing deficit in the country in a more practical way. At the signing event in Abuja, he said that the expected funds would help drive the proposed new housing model designed by the federal government at the 2016 housing summit and help fast-track the provision of about 10,000 housing units per annum.Esin further said that considering the fact that the level of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) contribution to housing is less than one per cent, the signing of the MoU was a critical step in the journey to bridge the gap and also provide job opportunity for over 150,000 people.FMBN has been in the vanguard of making sure that low income earners in the country who are at the receiving end of the housing deficit are assisted through a well-coordinated mortgage policy to provide for themselves one of mans essential needs. It is in this regard that the institution, especially since the coming on board of the Ag Managing Director, has made it a matter of priority to bring together all industry players such as the Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria (REDAN) and Shelter Afrique as well as the labour union and, of course, the federal government for the much needed policy backing in the drive to house everyone. The idea is to marshal out procedures and processes aimed at attaining that goal of housing for all. That initiative resulted in the signing of the MoU which the REDAN President, Rev. Ugo Chime commended when he said that the objectives of the agreement are geared towards addressing the crisis in the housing sector in a collaborative manner. He maintained that signing a tripartite MoU was, in his opinion, a more reliable and multi-disciplinary effort that will manage the high compliance cost and promote inclusive team work. The Special Adviser to the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Abiola Oki, who stood in for the minister said that the event marked the beginning of a mutually beneficial relationship and the forming of a strategic alliance which heralds a new chapter for the housing sector.The president of Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC), Bobboi Kaigama, who was also part of the epoch-making event averred that the provision of additional houses through this kind of multilateral cooperation would go a long way in ameliorating the plight of workers who bear the greater burden of the housing deficit. However, he admonished the parties involved to ensure that funding was made available so as to guarantee the success of the scheme.Instruments of cooperation, like this one, in our opinion, are the most effective way of tackling the embarrassing housing deficit in the country put at over 16 million as at last year. It is obvious that the governments, at all levels, with all the powers and resources at their disposal, cannot provide housing for all the citizens. Not for lack of trying but because housing is just one sector among the many sectors demanding their attention. The private sector has a big role to play in the sector. All it requires is the necessary policy and legal framework the government has to put in place with regard to land acquisition. The government must also assist particularly in the area of monetary policy so as to make access to funds in the financial market a little less cumbersome. In the meantime, we commend this initiative by the present management of FMBN in collaboration with the private developers that we hope will bring the much sought for palliative in the housing sector.
Click here to read full news..
