The Federal Government of Nigeria has cumulatively disbursed N10.95 billion to 86 co-operative societies across the country under the Co-operative Housing Development Loans, Minister for Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, has said.
Represented by the Minister of State for Works and Housing, Engr Abubakar Aliyu, Fashola said this on Thursday at the 9th meeting of the National Council on Lands, Housing and Urban Development in Jos, Plateau State.
He said the money was out of the N35.784 billion approved for the project.
He said 57 co-operative housing development loans were still under processing as of January this year.
The minister said the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) had been the driver of the initiative at the federal government’s level, adding that the potential for accessibility and affordability for the loan was for the “co-operative members can choose what they want and therefore design and build to fit their own individual and group budget.”
He said co-operatives can leverage their members to get group discounts for the purchase of building materials and the engagement of contractors to build.
He urged the council to ensure rapid deployment of co-operative housing in order to meet its desired objectives.
The minister also urged the state governments to make land available for the cooperative societies for the project, which, he said, can be very impactful in changing the affordability and accessibility paradigms in the COVID-19 era and beyond.
He urged the “Council to consider intervention by way of recommending a legislation that limits how much advance rent can be demanded or paid for renting accommodation,” to reduce the accommodation burden on Nigerians in post-COVID-19.
