Login Register
feel free to call 09056000005

Fashola Disputes Erroneous 17M Housing Deficit Report: Clarifying the Facts

The Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, on Monday, refuted reports that more than 17 million Nigerians are homeless.
Although he admitted the data used for the report was extracted from the preface of the 2012 National Housing Policy report, Fashola maintained that the data was “baseless and unverifiable.”
The minister, who likened the data source to “a house without an address”, lamented the fixation and binge on a supposed 17 million housing deficit by stakeholders who have no proof.
According to a statement issued by the minister’s special adviser on communication, Hakeem Bello, the former Lagos governor made the remark at a roundtable session of African ministers at the just concluded 42nd Annual General Meeting of Shelter Afrique, a pan-African bank, tagged, “The data question – which are the real numbers? harmonization of housing market data in Sub-Saharan Africa”.
He said the figure that sparked uproar among Nigerians was erroneously derived from a housing policy written by the ministry without a verifiable data source adding the minister at the time could not provide a source for the data.
He explained that the minister who admitted to the preface said aides and the pressure of work prepared it did not allow sufficient vetting.
The statement partly read, “Everyone in Nigeria knows there is a 17m housing deficit in Nigeria. This data has no credible source, but we are ready to assert it. Happily, I eventually found where it came from. It was in the preface to the 2012 National Housing Policy signed by the Minister then in charge of the Ministry of Housing, three years before I took office.
“I put a telephone call through to the Minister, who admitted to the preface but said aides and the pressure of work prepared it did not allow sufficient vetting. The Minister confirmed that the Data has no verifiable basis.”
Although the former Lagos governor admitted that Nigeria is a country with a significant number of empty houses, particularly in the urban areas, he noted that it is impossible to hold such a figure in spite of numerous housing projects embarked upon by the current administration.
The minister further appealed to the general public to disregard the figures, noting that the planned national census will disclose the number of homeless persons soon.
“Is there a housing deficit? certainly, there is. I acknowledge that but how should we approach it? My view is to use first what is proven and one of the things that has been proven is that the world has come to accept that rural-urban migration is fast-growing, a phenomenon called rapid urbanization.”
“To the right-thinking and well-meaning people, I urge you to disown this baseless data and I invite you all to let us work together like rational people using what we know while we await the result of the national housing population for 2023,” he added.
Reacting, the Chief Executive Officer, of Eximia Realty, Hakeem Ogunniran, queried the move by the minister to debunk the figures days to the end of the current administration, noting that, “It is absolutely uncharitable for any member of this government to disparage a figure (albeit extrapolated) which has been quoted and relied upon by such credible institutions as the World Bank, IFC, Center for Affordable Housing Finance in Africa and several leading experts in this field.
The expert who spoke via a Whatsapp platform for housing experts wrote, “If this government has an issue with this data, it had eight long years to conduct its own survey and give the “correct and credible” figures. Rather than “attack” the credibility of the housing deficit data at the twilight of its tenure, this government should admit the total failure of its National Housing Program which has delivered a meagre 2,800 units of houses in 8 long years. In reality, government officials should alight from their high horses, learn from those who know and get help in this all-important area.”
Another expert, Femi Oyedele, said, “The government must wake up, agree with the existing figures and start working with it or take responsibility to conduct a new housing census.”
 
 
 
 
Source: Punch.ng

Similar Topics

Event Set to Celebrate Managers Who Shape Careers and Drive Organizational Growth   Business...

10 days ago Read More

Global Leaders to Converge in Lagos for Landmark Event Driving Urban Innovation and...

10 days ago Read More

In a bold move to redefine affordable luxury housing, Nigerian real estate giant Gtext Holdings has...

18 days ago Read More

Industry Experts Urge Anti-Corruption Measures, Innovative Financing to Address Crisis By: Oche...

24 days ago Read More

LAGOS, NIGERIA – Global real estate consultancy Knight Frank and UK developer Mount Anvil...

25 days ago Read More

By Oche Onum Lagos, Nigeria As Nigeria’s real estate sector braces for 2025, rapid...

a month ago Read More

By Oche Onum Abuja, Nigeria In a landmark move to combat climate vulnerabilities in urban...

a month ago Read More

LAGOS, NIGERIA The Federal Government announced plans Wednesday to establish a Real Estate...

a month ago Read More

According to The Guardian's investigation, 70% of Nigerian states rely on manual land...

a month ago Read More

What is the Initiative? The Federal Government of Nigeria has unveiled an N100 billion private...

a month ago Read More

Abuja, Nigeria’s gleaming administrative capital, has long symbolized hope for migrants...

a month ago Read More

Abuja, Nigeria The Federal Housing Authority (FHA) has suspended all ongoing construction projects...

a month ago Read More

Lagos, Nigeria  Amid Nigeria’s escalating housing affordability crisis, real estate...

a month ago Read More

Renowned Nigerian gospel artist Mercy Chinwo has broken her silence in an emotional video...

a month ago Read More

The Nigerian real estate market is projected to hit $2.25 trillion by the end of 2025, according to...

a month ago Read More

Nigeria’s Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Ahmed Dangiwa, has called on...

2 months ago Read More

Affordable Housing and Luxury Properties Set to Propel Nigeria's Real Estate Market Over the Next...

2 months ago Read More

Hope for improved housing supply in Nigeria may remain unfulfilled, as the 2025 fiscal budget...

2 months ago Read More

Nigeria commemorated its annual Armed Forces Remembrance Day on January 15, honoring military...

2 months ago Read More

Nigeria’s ongoing GDP and CPI rebasing reveal real estate has overtaken oil and gas as the...

2 months ago Read More