Affordable Housing in Nigeria: Myth or Reality?

Is affordable housing in Nigeria a myth or reality?

The development and progress of any given society depends largely on how well the basic needs of the people are guaranteed or satisfied. This cannot be possible unless practicable and effective policies are put in place to satisfy these basic needs.

One of human basic needs that have continued to attract universal attention is the need of house. Unlike shelter which seems narrower in definition, housing is “more than just a shelter”, this is because it cuts across all the social services and activities that go to make a community or neighbourhood a liveable environment. Thus, housing does not only satisfy human basic need, but also helps in the development of society in general.

However, unlike the provision of other basic human needs such as food and clothing, the provision of housing has become a problem to almost all society. It is described as one of the universal experience that the whole world is being confronted with.

In Nigeria, many people always wait with keen interest to listen to budget speech at the beginning of each year. This is for nothing sake, but to hear how much have been allocated to some areas of priority interest. One of these areas of priority that have always attracted the attention of the people is the housing sector.

The housing sector has constantly been one of those sectors that receives higher allocation, yet it has remain one of the under developed sector of the economy. This is because successive government paid little attention to various housing schemes most especially those that concern the low income class. Hence, the goal of making housing affordable and accessible has only become an imagination or others would call an illusion.

The problem of public sector housing scheme does not only affect the provision of housing but also its maintenance.

Although both private and public sector initiatives have continue to metamorphose at various levels with the aim of stemming the tides, the housing needs of the people especially among the low income class have remained a source of concern. Little wonder, the problems of public sector housing have dominated other topics of national discourse in recent times. It has not only become a subject of discussion among the labour unions in Nigeria, but also among the professionals in housing sector, property developers, organisations, the media and the individuals with similar interest.

The reason why problems of housing have become topical issues recently could not be unconnected to the fact that many successive governments in Nigeria had embarked on public housing schemes but have not yielded any appreciable result. The low income class has continued to suffer untold hardship especially those who are living in the urban centres, where cost of living is very high.

Read also: Solving The Problem Of Affordable Housing In Nigeria

Although problems of housing generally has become a matter of national concern in Nigeria, many states seem to have their own peculiar type of housing problems as far as public sector housing scheme is concerned.

Take Lagos state for instance, despite the concentration of public housing scheme in the state many Lagosians still live in squalor in slum areas while others suffer problems of high cost of rent, overcrowding, over utilization of infrastructural facilities and insecurity. The most disturbing problem that has affected the lives of the low income class in recent times is the problem of “quit notice” adopted by many landlord to eject those who are not ready to accept rent increase. Some of these housing related problems are partly not unconnected with the ever increasing population of the city of excellence; people throng into the former Nigerian capital daily.

It must be understood that the supposed low cost housing scheme in the country like any other low cost housing scheme is meant to be affordable even to the low income class as the name implies. However, this has been the contrary in Nigeria. Hence, most of these public housing schemes only end up in the hands of rich or high income class and the senior civil servants. A situation where 98% of public housing accommodation in Nigeria is being occupied by the middle and high income class shows that the common man cannot afford a decent housing any longer, thereby raising eyebrows on the affordability of the “so called” affordable housing schemes.

Also, the various tiers of government have continued to sing their determination to provide housing for all, albeit, what they are actually doing is building for those who have and can afford to build more. This cannot be seen therefore to be an act of providing affordable housing, or is it?

Affordable housing presupposes access to descent and functional houses at “priceless” accessible to majority of Nigerians. Therefore, the goal stated above cannot be achievable unless the various tiers of government fashion out a practicable and effective policy to address the problem of low income housing in order to avoid a situation where the scheme will be hijacked or monopolized by the high income class.

Since housing problems have ever remained an endemic problem in Nigeria, it is clear that past policies and programmes in both public and private sector have not provided any meaningful solution to the problems of housing in Nigeria.

Is the hope of the low income class to own their own houses becoming an illusion?

By and large, it won’t be out of place to conclude that government have not done enough towards meeting the housing needs of the people of Nigeria, particularly the low income class.

Again, most of the public housing scheme established by government those not favour the interest of the low income class considering the cost of the government rented quarters and the conditions for benefiting from some of these housing schemes.

Read also: AFFORDABLE HOUSING: Is it the basic right of every Lagosian? (Part 1)