Housing Ministry, APDC to Partner on Renewed Hope Cities, Sales of Houses   ... Dangiwa urges APDC to explore the idea of raising funds through the capital to provide houses for different classes of citizens   Housing and Urban Development Minister,  Arc. Ahmed Musa Dangiwa, has told the management of Abuja Property Development Company (APDC) of the readiness of his Ministry to partner with the Company to enable them key in to the ministry's Renewed Hope Cities and Estates project across the nation.   Dangiwa made this known when he received in audience the delegation from the Abuja Property Development Company, (APDC), led by its Acting Managing Director,  Akeem Aderogba." The delivery plan of Renewed Hope Cities and Estates is hinged on PPP. I urged you to engage with the PPP department of the Ministry in order to key in to the programme" he stated.   The minister also underscored the significance of knowledge sharing with APDC in the sell of the ministry's bulk of houses, saying that APDC has a success story for the ministry to learn from. " I like to know your experiences in selling these house and your assessments over demands of the types of houses in FCT " he stated.   Accordingly,  the minister added that leveraging on the experiences of APDC has become necessary and imperative because this is the first time the housing ministry is going into the huge volume of housing units for sale, noting that, APDC has a robust marketing department through which houses constructed by the company are comfortably sold  to the public.   Commending APDC on the strong and effective management of their facilities accross the country, the  Minister noted that, APDC Homes are properly managed, requesting the company to avail his staff of the knowledge on facility management and how to improve on it.   On renew hope estates and cities, the Minister explained, that the estates part of programme are planned  specifically for low and middle income earners most of whom are of the organised labour and unions. He added that  the types of houses constructed in the estates are one to three bedrooms bungalows and are sited in the six geo-political zones of the country.   Explainibg further, the Minister said that the Renewed Hope Cities and Estates is aimed to avert social inequality, providing a broad range of affordable ownership for both cities and estates, adding that, the option of getting the houses would  include single digit loan and mortgage facility  provided by the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria, as long as interested buyers are contributors of National Housing Fund, NHF.   He also mentioned other options of purchase open to Nigerians to include the Rent-to-Own, Outright and Installment purchases, apart from the mortgage facility.   Meanwhile, the Minister has advised Abuja Property Development Company to explore the idea of raising funds through the capital market in order to provide houses for different classes of citizens in Nigeria.   " With adequate capital, the property company could provide houses for low and middle income earners as well as the high income earners" he stated.   To effectively, accommodate the low, middle and high income earners, the Minister advised the management of the APDC to reduce the specification for structures meant for low income earners and increase that of high end earners, suggesting they could be sold with 10% interest for low end earners and 20% for high end earners.   Speaking earlier, the Acting Managing Director APDC,  Akeem Aderogba, said there were in the ministry to inform the minister of their request to key into the Renewed Hope Cities and Estates programme.   To convince the Ministry of their capability to key into the programme, Aderogba noted that APDC is a property development company who has grown from developing one estate in Gadi district, Abuja to four homes which are currently simultaneously developed and has never had a court case due to inability to deliver their mandate to Nigerians, pledging not to disppoint the Minister if request is granted.   Aderogbas listed the APDC Homes namely; APDC Capital Homes in Kaba, Gadi district, APDC Homes in Karsana, APDC Homes, Dongwari, Life Camp and APDC Homes in Millennium City, Kaduna, Kaduna state. ...

Housing Sector, Catalyst for Job Creation for the Nigerian Youths - Dangiwa   Housing and Urban Development Minister, Arch Ahmed Musa Dangiwa has stated that, the Ministry's housing targets of over 10, 862 housing units across the six geo political zones of the Country will  translate to lots of job creation for mostly the youths, poverty alleviation and increase in the Country’s GDP.   Dangiwa stated this when he received the leadership of the National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN), led by its National President,  Amb. Sukubo Sara-Igbe Sukubo on a courtesy visit to his office, Thursday,  March 7th, 2024.   The Minister described the Nigerian Youth as beacon of hope, adding that they were the major beneficiaries of the jobs being created in the course of executing the housing programmes of the Ministry.   Dangiwa also noted that the visit of the Youth Council was a testament to the vibrant spirit of commitment of the Nigerian youth towards the betterment of the Nation.   He commended the dedication of the Council to promoting the interest and welfare of the Nigerian youth as well as the inspiration in their efforts to provide platforms for youth to voice their concerns, develop their skills and also contribute to National development.   Accordingly, Dangiwa nformed the Youth Council that he was up to speed with the challenges facing the youth, especially in accessing affordable housing as well as securing a sustainable livelihood in the Urban areas, assuring that their concerns will be taken into consideration.   “ I am pleased to say that the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development is committed to ensuring that our Youth have access and opportunity to participate in the Renewed Hope Cities and Estates Programmes, and the affordable housing Programmes that are being championed by the Agencies under the Ministry’s supervision, including the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) and the Federal Housing Authority (FHA)” he said.   The Minister also encouraged the youth, through the Council to actively participate in the National Housing Fund Scheme in order to benefit from the affordable housing offers, managed and administered by the FMBN.   He explained that, the scheme allows every Nigerian to contribute 2.5 percent of their income into National Housing Fund, which  guarantees a benefit of a 6 percent interest concessionary loan, and also individual construction loan which caters to Nigerians with a valid C of O title, for a period of 30 years and more.   “ Our major aim is to provide affordable housing solutions that cater to the needs of young Nigerians whether first time home buyers, renters or aspiring entrepreneurs looking to invest in affordable housing developments”, he remarked.   The minister also welcomed the proposed idea of a summit on Housing and Urban Development aimed at informing the Nigerian youth of the plans and projects of the Ministry, as well as the procedures to owning their houses.   Earlier, the NYCN President, Sukubo Sara-Igbe Sukubo congratulated  the Honourable Minister on his appointment as the Minister of Housing and Urban Development and expressed readiness of the Youth Council  to partner and support the Ministry to ensure achieving successes in the sector  They Council appealed for appointment Youth Desk Officer who would interface with the National Executive Council and the National Youth Council of Nigeria on information concerning the Ministry’s programme and also a building structure that would be dedicated to the youths. ...

“Perform or Leave”, Minister Charges New Management of Housing Agencies …..Says Current Housing Crisis Leaves no Room for Underperformance The Hon. Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Arc. Ahmed Musa Dangiwa has charged newly appointed Executive Management Teams of federal housing agencies to deliver on reform targets saying that “anyone who fails to perform will be asked to leave”.   The Hon. Minister gave this charge during his first meeting with the Management Teams of Nigeria’s premier housing agencies - the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) and Federal Housing Authority (FHA), at the Ministry’s headquarters in Abuja on Thursday 22nd February 2024.   Recall that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had on Thursday 15th February 2024 approved the appointment of new management teams for the FMBN and FHA, with Mr. Shehu Usman Osidi emerging as the new Managing Director and Chief Executive of the FMBN and Hon. Oyetunde Oladimeji Ojo as Managing Director and Chief Executive of the FHA.   Arc. Dangiwa noted that the new leadership should see their appointment by the President as a call to impactful service, and not an opportunity to make merry and self-enrich. He reiterated the President’s resolve to periodically assess and replace appointees that fail to meet expectations, reminding them of their responsibility to Nigerians.   “As Minister of Housing and Urban Development, I have my deliverables from Mr. President. As leaders of agencies under the supervision of my Ministry, you are to fashion out ways to deliver on them. If you work hard and deliver, you will stay. If you don’t work hard and fail to deliver, you will leave before your term. I believe that is a strong message that Mr. President has already passed across to all appointees. Don’t look at the 5-year term, look at your ability to meet the targets for every review session. Because when it comes to review and KPIs, I won't be looking at your faces.   “What we want is action, progress, improved customer service delivery and more Nigerians owning homes. Both the FMBN and FHA Management Teams must see this as a new beginning for real progress. This must reflect in the quantum of houses delivered and fully occupied by Nigerians.   The Minister added that despite the harsh economic realities and the rising cost of housing construction, the new leadership must transform and innovate in order to drive Mr President’s Renewed Hope vision for housing and urban development.   Speaking on the expectations of the FMBN, he said the bank should work towards delivering a minimum of 5,000 new homes annually, disburse mortgage loans to at least 20,000 Nigerians annually, increase the National Housing Fund (NHF) collection by expanding the subscription net, address the backlog of audited accounts and clean up its books for better financing opportunities, and quickly roll out the Diaspora Mortgage Scheme for increased housing delivery, among others.   “For the FHA, I expect to see more flexibility and innovation in its operations rather than the usual, conventional, docile way of doing things. The ministry expects the FHA to make judicious use of its license to operate across all income segments in the broad strategy of the government to deliver housing to Nigerians, as well as get more funding from the capital market by issuing bonds to deliver mass housing projects across the country, market them, pay back the loans, and declare profit.   “We also expect to see the FHA delivering a minimum of 5,000 houses annually to Nigerians. The agency should also take advantage of its status as an agency without budgetary allocations to be inventive, partner with credible investors, and local and international financing partners to deliver more houses to Nigerians,” he said.   Dangiwa added that the Ministry will keep track of the progress in both agencies on a year-to-year basis, noting that their KPIs are the only things that will matter when the time comes to assess them. “We have a responsibility to Nigerians, and we cannot afford to fail. On our part, we will continue to work to strengthen your capacities and break down the limitations that hamper your performance.   “Let me, once again, reiterate the seriousness of His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, to ensure the full implementation of the Renewed Hope Agenda for Housing and Urban Development. We can already see that the Renewed Hope Cities and Estates Programme is one of the signpost projects of his administration. He will not tolerate failure or mediocrity, and neither will I,” he said.   Other members of the Executive Management Team of the FMBN are Mr. Ibidapo Odojukan, Executive Director, Finance & Corporate Services; Mr. Muhammad Sani Audu, Executive Director, Loans & Mortgage Services; and Mrs. Executive Director, Business Development & Portfolios. In the FHA Management are Mr. Mathias Terwase Byuan, Executive Director, Housing Finance & Accounts; Mr. Umar Dankane Abdullahi, Executive Director, Business Development; and Engr. Oluremi Omowaiye, Executive Director, Project Implementation. ...