The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Orange Estates Land Developers Nigeria Limited, Mr. Apoede Atsegbua, has urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to create a social fund that will provide homes to rural and semi-urban dwellers.
Atsegbua in an interview with Daily Trust, said majority of the informal sector live in rural and semi-urban areas and they cannot afford the flats and duplexes in the cities so they needed a special fund that will cater for their housing needs.
He said, “Now government should create a social housing fund specifically meant for low-income earners and the government should select developers that will be given these funds through selected banks to build houses for low-income earners. This is the only way the government can achieve affordable homes in Nigeria.
“I have travelled the length and breadth of this country and I have seen extreme poverty, especially how the rural dwellers suffer to get shelter. Even in urban settings now, you see people living in ramshackle houses. You find a family of 10 living in one room and when you ask simple questions, one thing keeps coming up; ‘I am a low income earner, I am a civil servant in low grade and my salary is not more than N60, 000.’ So they cannot afford decent homes because they are low income earners whether they are working in the public service and in the private sector or in the informal sector.”
The Abuja based realtor who said he is an advocate of affordable housing, said he and his friends came together to tackle the “big issue (housing deficit) in Nigeria, which we can address because we have the expertise; we are professionals of different backgrounds.”
He said the main objective of his real estate company is to provide affordable housing for low income earners but they would also build luxury homes for the upscale market of the sector across Nigeria.
“We are looking forward to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu announcing his ministers so that we start engaging them, especially the minister of FCT, the minister of works and housing and the 36 state governors. What these governors do mostly is spend billions funding projects in the city centres, building bridges but when you go outside the city, you see people living in ramshackle houses, build with bamboos, wood and mud; houses that are not fit for animals, human beings, men, women and children are living in those homes. It makes them vulnerable to bandits, terrorists and reptiles,” he added.
He said as part of its contribution to addressing the housing deficit in the country, they have plans to build 3.4 million houses in 10 years, adding that the company will partner with state governments and the minister of FCT to achieve that.
Atsegbua said, already, his company has partnered with the Edo State government to build ESDPC-Orange Homes in Benin City. He said the estate will be made up of one, two and three bedroom flats totaling 107.
“We are looking at middle and low income earners so some of the houses will go for as low as N8 million while others will go for N12 and N15 million respectively,” he said.
