By ABAH ADAH, Abuja
The issue of housing deficit in Nigeria which has attracted so much attention in recent times will be on the front burner at this year’s Abuja International Housing Show.
Briefing newsmen in Abuja (AIHS), the convener of the housing show and President, Housing Development Advocacy Network (HDAN), Festus Adebayo, said from all indications, the country faces huge housing deficit, adding that urgent steps need be taken to address it in the interest of the youth who, according to him, are the future of the country.
“We all know that there is housing deficit in Nigeria. If you look at the way the country’s population is growing geometrically, and provision of housing is not progressing, even arithmetically, that tells you that there is a huge deficit,” he said.
He noted that to use unoccupied houses in the towns and cities to conclude that the deficit is not as serious as the figures in the public domain is incorrect.
In a statement credited to the Hon. Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola recently, the Minister, who discredited figures of over 17 million housing deficit in the country, was of the view that the major problem is urbanisation, causing many houses, especially in rural areas, to remain unoccupied and empty.
According to Adebayo, the unoccupied houses in towns belong to those who already have houses and can buy as many as possible, adding that those houses are unoccupied not because people are not there to occupy them, but because they can only be affordable to the rich.
“If you really want to know the level of the deficit then go to locations outside the city centres and see the living conditions of the people. You would mama lagbaja living in one single room with her six children, and here we are, talking about social distancing to check the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic,” Adebayo said.
He identified the challenge behind tackling housing deficit in the country to lack of accurate data or figure to enable proper planning, adding that steps would be taken towards that at the show.
“The issue at stake here is how to get an accurate and reliable figure of the deficit. Nigeria doesn’t have that at the moment, and the journey towards knowing will start during the Abuja International Housing Show.
“We are already collaborating with the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics, (NBS), the National Population Commission (NPC), and other stakeholders,” he said, adding that the initiative was there before, but what had been lacking was action to expedite the process.
