2024 Budget Defence : Housing ministry, NASS committees to work towards achieving housing mandate

By Mashe Umaru Gwamna

The joint committee of the National Assembly (Senate & House of Representatives), comprising committees on Housing, Lands , Urban and Regional development, and Habitat scrutinized the 2024 budget proposal of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development
This was contained in a statement signed by Director Information, Badamasi S. Haiba .
Under the Chairmanship of Senator Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, the Chairman Senate Committee on Housing and Urban Development, the joint committee assured the ministry of their diligent legislative work on the budget proposal to enable the Ministry achieve it’s statutory mandate.
During his presentation at the budget defence, the Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Arc Ahmed Musa Dangiwa listed out the ministry’s priority projects in the 2024 budget to include among others; construction of 20,000 housing units under the Renewed Hope Agenda Housing Scheme to provide affordable housing and reduce the housing deficit bedeviling Nigeria; completion of the construction of National Housing Programmes in 35 states of the federation, and completion of ongoing construction of Federal secretariats in 11 states of the federation which are at various construction stages
Other priorities also include; upscalling slumps upgrading and urban renewal programmes across the 36 states of the federation and FCT; settlement of liabilities of MDGs, SDGs, ZIP and Direct Mandate Projects of Special Projects Unit and setlement of outstanding Urban and Regional Development liabilities on completed urban renewal and slums upgrading projects.
Accordingly, the Minister also listed as part of the challenges of the Ministry; the skyrocketing cost of building materials which is affecting the performance of contractors of the National Housing Programme, maintenance and operation of public buildings and insufficient budgetary provision for projects
In the company of the Honourable minister at the budget defence were; the Minister of State, Abdullahi Tijjani Gwarzo, Permanent Secretary, Mahmuda Mamman and the Directors of the Ministry.