The Federal Government is set to partner with the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs to deliver free housing for internally displaced persons and other vulnerable groups across Nigeria as part of the Renewed Hope Social Housing Programme.
An official in the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, disclosed that this collaboration aims to ensure that the most disadvantaged citizens benefit from the upcoming housing scheme.
According to the official, the programme will deliver 100 housing units in each of the country’s 774 local government areas, amounting to a total of 77,400 units nationwide.
“The Renewed Hope social housing programme is to be sited in all the local government areas in Nigeria, 100 units in each of the 774 local governments, and that’s how they arrived at 77,400 units,” the official explained.
Although the programme is yet to be officially launched, it is currently awaiting residential approval to proceed.
“It’s a programme that is yet to be launched. It is still awaiting residential approval to go ahead. But it’s going to get approval, and both are waiting for residential approval,” the source said.
The initiative specifically targets low- and no-income earners, including people earning N77,000 and below, as well as those with no formal income.
“That particular project is targeted specifically at low- and no-income earners. So, low-income earners, people who earn the barest minimum wage that you can think of, right? That’s N77,000 and below. Then no income earners are those who don’t even earn an income; that’s all. We’re looking at widows, we’re looking at vulnerable persons in society, we’re looking at IDPs,” the official stated.
Full details and allocation criteria will be made public once the programme is officially launched.
“When the programme is eventually launched, all of the modalities will be publicly declared. It’s not going to be a secret. For now, it’s still under wraps because it has not been launched,” the source added.
To effectively reach the most vulnerable, the ministry will collaborate with the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, which already has established processes for identifying and assisting such individuals.
“But what I can tell you is that for the ones that will be dedicated to no income earners, that’s people who don’t earn an income at all, the ministry will be collaborating with the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs since they already have a process for vulnerable individuals in society.”
For low-income earners, the housing units will be highly subsidised by the Federal Government. Beneficiaries will be expected to contribute a small percentage of their monthly income, though this will not be enough to cover the actual cost of construction.
“But for the low-income earners, people who earn the barest minimum wage, the process has not been revealed because it has not been launched; at whatever cost they are going to get it, the houses are going to be highly subsidised by the government because those people cannot by themselves afford those houses,” the official said.
“They will be given the houses, and then they will be told to pay a certain percentage of their income every month until they retire. But even at that, we know that whatever they’re going to pay until retirement will still not cover the costs. So, the Federal Government is going to subsidise those houses for them.”
