FG To Work Towards Adequate Funding Of Federal Housing Authority-Sambo
The Minister of State for Works and Housing, Mu’azu Jaji Sambo, has said that the Federal Government will work towards adequate funding of Federal Housing Authority (FHA) for the realization of its mandate.
Sambo said this when he was on an official tour to the Headquarters of Federal Housing Authority, Abuja where he was briefed on its activities.
Sambo noted that since FHA was established to cater for low and middle income earners, it would therefore need funding intervention from the federal government to develop affordable houses for that category of citizens.
The Minister, while responding to the agitation of management concerning the removal of FHA from the appropriation bill, advised the management to put up a position paper that would be passed to the appropriate authority to justify the need for budgetary allocation and seek inclusion into the budget appropriation.
"I have advised the management of FHA to put together a position paper that we can use to canvas the appropriate authorities for funds because the Federal Housing Authority was established to cater for the low and middle income earners in the country.”
In addition, Sambo advised the management of FHA to adopt a proactive mechanism in planning and managing their resources.
The Minister also explained that the Land Use Act has limited the Federal Government Agencies to acquire land in the states for mass housing delivery since land belongs to the states.
“The Land Use Act of 1978 is a challenge. In the Act, all lands are under the administration of respective state governments. Here is a Federal agency that wants to develop houses for low-income and middle-income earning Nigerians and it does not have land. It means we are at the mercy of various state governments for us to get land. You cannot build a house on water’” he said.
He, however, urged the management of FHA to build a robust relationship with state governors in a way that would be beneficial to both parties because no state governor would turn a blind eye to what would be advantageous to the citizens of the state.
Speaking earlier, the Managing Director of FHA, Senator Gbenga Ashafa, advocated for the review of the laws establishing Federal Housing Authority, adding that they are impeding its performance.
Ashafa further informed the Minister that inadequate funding has continued to hinder their output.
According to him , the Authority which used to enjoy Federal Government's funding through budget appropriation to finance social or affordable housing projects could no longer perform its duties in this regard because it was removed from budget appropriation since 2004,adding that it has limited financial resources available for use.
Senator Ashafa appealed to the Minister to use his position to ensure that FHA can be included in the budget appropriation, noting that it would help the Authority to construct affordable houses and provide employment opportunities for Nigerians being part of the key agenda of the government of President Muhammad Buhari, GCFR.
Meanwhile, at Zuba Housing Estate, Arc. Adamu Taminu, while conducting the Minister round the Estate, explained that it is comprised of 76 blocks of unit of 2bedrooms, 16 units of 1 bedroom and 18 duplexes of 3bedrooms with 95% completion stage and would be completed in the next three months.
At the Apo - Guzape Housing Estate which is a Public Private Partnership model between the Federal Housing Authority, ENL Consortium Limited and Individual Developers, the Project Manager Federal Housing Authority, Mr. Bello Yusuf, explained that out of the 111 houses constructed under Direct Construction 88 units have been completed, 764 housing units are ongoing under the PPP project.
The Federal Housing Estate at Apo- Guzape has necessary infrastructure in place ranging from civil, electrical and mechanical as well as provision of adequate security to make the estate habitable for off takers.
Sambo was impressed with the quality of work at the two housing estates he inspected.
