FCTA waives N28.5bn on workers’ housing scheme

By Stanley Onyekwere

In order to improve access to about 10,000 units of various types of houses under the Nationwide Workers’ Housing Scheme, in Apo Tapyi District, the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) gave a waiver of about N28 billion on the land premium and about N550 million waiver on building plan approval for the project.

According to the FCT minister, Senator Bala Mohammed, who made this disclosure, his administration gave these waivers to make the houses even more affordable to the workers who are the end beneficiaries.

Recall that President Goodluck Jonathan last week flagged off the scheme, which is part of the administration’s plan to deliver about 100,000 housing units in the FCT and the 36 States of the Federation.

According to the President the initiative is part of the transformation agenda of his administration to provide adequate and affordable houses to Nigerians particularly, the workers.

However, Mohammed, who spoke at the occasion, reiterated that the right to shelter is an economic, social and cultural right as recognized in many national constitutions and in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

This, he noted that it is in recognition of which that President Jonathan’s administration has placed high premium on provision of housing for all in the Transformation Agenda of the Federal Government.

The minister explained that over the period of time, FCTA has been dynamic in providing initiatives such as Accelerated Development, Affordable Housing and District Development to address prevailing housing deficit.

“The Land Swap initiative represents our strategy for leveraging private capital in the provision of infrastructure and housing with the expectation of development of 15 districts to provide houses for more than one million residents.

“And creating 500,000 new jobs with capital inflow of about one trillion Naira, in the next five years,” he stressed.

The scheme, which is a project of the federal government in partnership with the Nigeria Labour Congress and Trade Union Congress, has Good Homes Development Company Limited, as its developer.