The minister of housing and urban development, Ahmed Musa Dangiwa, has announced that 6,612 housing units are currently under construction across the country as part of the Renewed Hope Cities and Estates programme.
Speaking at the ministerial briefing on Friday, May 24, Dangiwa revealed that the projects are ongoing in states whose governors have offered land to the ministry to build affordable houses for Nigerians.
He said: “We have planned and commenced the actualization of the Renewed Hope Cities and Estates Development Programme, which Mr. President launched earlier this year. Under phase one, we plan to deliver a total of 50,000 housing units across Nigeria.
“The Cities will have 1,000 housing units per site in one location in each of the six geo-political zones in the country and FCT, while the Estates will have 500 housing units per site in the remaining thirty (30) states.”
He emphasised that the ministry’s strategy is centred around three core pillars of President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda: “growing the economy, lifting 100 million Nigerians out of poverty, and creating an enabling environment for investments to thrive.”
The minister highlighted the ministry’s commitment to delivering on its promise to Nigerians, noting significant success in affordable housing provision, slum upgrade, and sector-wide reforms to position the housing and urban sector as a critical enabler of social and economic prosperity for Nigerians.
The Renewed Hope Cities and Estates programme aims to deliver 50,000 housing units in the first phase, with 1,000 housing units per site in each of the six geo-political zones and the FCT, and 500 housing units per site in the remaining 30 states.
“We have designed the Renewed Hope Cities as integrated living communities targeting all income brackets. They comprise one-bedroom blocks of flats, two-bedroom blocks of flats, and three-bedroom blocks of flats; two-, three- and four-bedroom terraces, four-bedroom duplexes, and five-bedroom duplexes.
“On the other hand, we have conceptualized the Renewed Hope Estates to cater to low- and medium-income earners. They comprise one-, two-, and three-bedroom semi-detached bungalows.
“To enhance affordability and ease of off-take, we used organic designs where one bedroom can be expanded to two bedrooms and three bedrooms as the income of beneficiaries increases over time,” he explained.
Dangiwa emphasized the focus on integration and inclusivity in the ministry’s approach to redefining the concept of cities, noting that “We have planned and commenced the actualization of the Renewed Hope Cities and Estates Development Programme, which Mr. President launched earlier this year.”
The Minister also highlighted the provision of housing as an important driver of economic development, noting that “50,000 units that we plan to deliver under phase 1 will create 1,250,000 direct and indirect construction jobs. This is in addition to the value chain effects of purchase, supply of building materials, businesses around the construction sites, etc.”
The ministry has received 8,925 expressions of interest for the housing units, with four windows of subscription available: Outright Payment, Mortgage, Rent-to-Own, and Instalmental Payment.
“We received a total of 8,925 Expression of Interest. This comprises 1,294 for Outright Purchase, 2,408 for Mortgage, 2,184 for Rent-To-Own and 3,039 for Instalment payment. Last month we released the 1st batch of Offer of New Provisional Allocation Letters for Outright Payment for successful applicants,” he said.
Additionally, the ministry is targeting 26 areas nationwide for slum upgrading and urban renewal, with key services including water supply, solar streetlights, rehabilitation of access roads, and waste management and sanitation services.
“The key services to be provided in these sites include water supply, solar streetlights, rehabilitation of access roads, construction of drainages, and waste management and sanitation services among others,” he remarked.
Other programmes include the National Social Housing Fund, which is being worked out to cater to the NO INCOME segment of the economy, and critical reforms taking place in housing institutions and macroeconomic components, such as building materials, land use, and so on.
