The Lagos State Commissioner for Housing, Mr Moruf Akinderu-Fatai, said that the State Government had in the last four to five years provided over 3,000 housing units in the state, with efforts underway to reach 7,000.
Akinderu-Fatai disclosed this at a media parley on the scorecard of his ministry yesterday in Lagos.
He said that building more units would help the state to address housing deficit.
According to him, housing deficit is a major challenge, particularly for low-income earners.
To this effect, he said that the government was working on policy changes to attract investment and build more housing units in the state.
He noted that population growth was putting additional pressure on available houses, hence, the need to meet the growing demand for affordable housing.
According to him, the attraction of people from other areas to Lagos has further increased the demand for housing.
The commissioner said that the state government was seriously working to amend two laws that would build investors’ confidence and make them bring their money.
He said, “the state government is seriously working on two laws – rent control laws and the mortgage laws.
“The rent laws are aimed to impose limitations on rent increases and so, amending them will make it more flexible and attractive to those looking to invest in rental properties”.
“Also, the government is working on improving mortgage laws and attracting private sector investment in affordable housing.
“So, modifying construction standards or permitting processes can streamline the development process and reduce investment costs.’’
Akinderu-Fatai noted that inflation and foreign exchange exposure had also made building affordable houses for these groups more challenging.
The commissioner advised the private sector to cooperate with the state to address the housing needs of low-income earners through Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives.
He said that the government was open to flexible forms of involvement and would welcome even limited contributions to make a collective impact. (NAN)
