Housing
is one of the basic yardsticks for human survival and the need to ensure its
qualitative and quantitative delivery cannot be overemphasized. Further study
on housing becomes paramount when considering the rate influx of people from
the rural areas to urban setting particularly because of dichotomy, which exist
within the rural and urban areas in the developing world. The phenomenal growth
of large urban agglomeration in the third world region of the world over the
last few decades has become global concern. Reports reveal that by the year
2020, a high proportion of 93% of the worlds over billion people will occur in
the third world countries and that 2.2 billion inhabitant will be added to the
population in the cities. An increase of 160%. Some cities however are growing
two or three times faster than the country’s over population, reflecting
massive migration to the cities.
For instance the population of Lagos grew at
an average of 5.6% per year compared with 3% growth rate for Nigeria for
Nigeria as a whole. The united nation predicts that the city metropolitan area
which had which had about 290,000 inhabitants in 1950, will exceed 20
million by in some years ahead, making Lagos one of the world’s five largest
cities. Notably, the rapid increase in the rate of these urban agglomerations
have been faced with colossal urban problems such as the growth of urban slum
and informal settlement characterized by substandard housing with lack of basic
amenities among others. However, various finance strategies are put in place in
other to solve the housing problems. Regrettably, financial strategies are put
in place with lack of adequate knowledge of housing needs of the population.
report
reveal that the most comprehensive national estimate for the housing of the
nation to date was concluded in 1985 by Nigerian institute of social economic
research and published in 1990 using various assumption of urbanization rate
for the urban and rural areas as well as different housing types and per-person
dwelling till the year 202020. The results also indicate that Nigeria would
need between 99,989,286 33,573,900 and 28,548,630 units at high, medium and low
housing estimate. In the past, the colonial period witnessed housing activities
and polices of the government which focused on the provision of expatiates
staff and selected staff alike in specialized occupants like railways
police, Armed forces. 1960-1976, it’s witnessed the emergence of the
first and second national development plan which occurred in 1962-68 and 1970-75
respectively. Housing during this period was regarded as a social-non income
generating sector the private sector was not encouraged to invest particularly
for low income people.
Furthermore, repot reveal that the financial
institutions directly responsible were few and poorly organized. In 1976-1985
the first and second national development plan failed to provide adequate
housing resulting in slum and unhygienic conditions this period
witnessed the third national development plan in which its provision among
others aimed at alleviating housing problem. Among these were significant step
taken to make accessible housing loans to Nigerians through the manipulation of
monetary instruments and the reconstitution of the Nigerian building society
into federal mortgage bank of Nigeria to serve as the apex institution of
housing loans in Nigeria. In addition, the state and the local government as
well as private employers having employees of fifty and above were encourage in
the provision of houses and granting of loans to their employees. The federal
government also made it mandatory for banks to devote 5-6% of their total
deposit and the insurance companies up to 25% of their life deposits in housing
provision. However, this huge step did not yield and significant impact in
housing provision.
1986 till date is observing continuous
pressure in the government to urgently act on the dwindling nature of housing
delivery which culminated into the setting up of national housing committee in
1985 which eventually led to the national housing policy of 1990. The committee
identifies housing finance as the bedrock of the policy which led to the
radical structuring of housing finance system. Report reveal that
although, many financial institution were put in place before 1975 and
reconstituted in 1979 it indicate that they did not measure up to the housing
needs of the population particularly the low income earners. For instance, the
past administration of Lagos from 1999 to 2007, report indicate that it was
able to construct an absolute total of672 housing units in ikorodu,358 in
oko-oba, 16 units in surulere, 38 in Amuwo odofin231 in isheri,357 units in
lekki 162 units in agege, 19 units in Alapere, and 19units in isolo
respectively. Out of 1,926 units built all over the state in seven years, only
104 units are one bedroom and 570units are two bedrooms respectively. This is
grossly inadequate when viewed within the context of housing needs of low
income population in the state and when compared with the record of the housing
provision of the 1980s majority of the low-income house hold is being housed by
private developers who build houses for rent. These houses are often
characterized by poor services and facilities. A blank approach has always been
employed in other to identify low-income housing earner. In other word, it has
always been viewed in terms of social stratification at the expense of
affordability. If all said must achieve it desired objective, a
comprehensive national housing study must satisfy all encompassing. These
include economizing on the use of new resources and avoiding destruction of
existing housing asset, expanding the willingness of the people to contribute
in kind and their ability to contribute in cash to their housing;
providing a range of different standard of housing to match the resources and
the needs of different income group; and ensuring a reasonably equitable
distribution of available resources of housing between income groups
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