FG launches 250 Housing units in Katsina, warns contractors against substandard project
…Estate to create 6,250 jobs for Katsina indigenes
By Faith Awa Maji, Katsina
The Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Architect Ahmed Musa Dangiwa, has warned contractors handling Federal Government’s Renewed Hope Cities and Estates against substandard projects.
He gave the warning on Wednesday at the ground- breaking of 250 housing units for the Renewed Hope Estate in Katsina.
“I want to task the developers of this project to ensure that they build according to specifications and deliver a quality job as substandard work will not be tolerated.
“We also want to have this work finished within the next three months so that we can begin the process of offtake for Katsina indigenes.
“The Renewed Hope Estate in Katsina comprises 50 units of 1-bedroom semi-detached bungalows, 100 units of 2-bedroom semi-detached bungalows, and 50 units of 3-bedroom semi-detached bungalows.
“We have used organic designs to allow for future expansion as the income of beneficiaries increases. What this means is that the 1-bedroom can be expanded to 2 bedrooms and a 2-bedroom expandable to 3 bedrooms as the owner’s financial situation improves or he grows in service.
“We have also created different options to enable everyone who has a source of income and livelihood to own the homes when they are completed. These include single-digit mortgage loans with up to 30-year terms provided by the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria, rent-to-own schemes, and outright purchase options for those who can afford to pay upfront.
“I want to say that today’s event is part of a larger vision of His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, when he launched the Renewed Hope Cities and Estates project with a 3,112-housing unit project in Karsana, Abuja, earlier this year.
“Under phase one, we plan to deliver a total of 50,000 housing units across Nigeria. The cities will have between 500 – 1,000 housing units per site in one location in each of the six geopolitical zones in the country and the FCT, while the estates will have 250 units per site in the remaining 30 states.
“The Renewed Hope Cities and Estates programme is designed to be a catalyst for economic growth. Each housing unit is expected to create an average of 25 direct and indirect jobs, translating to approximately 6,250 jobs for the 250 units here in Katsina alone.
“Nationwide, we currently have estates in 12 locations and three cities across the country. The estates include those in Katsina, Yobe, Gombe, Abia, Nasarawa, Benue, Akwa Ibom, Delta, Sokoto, Oyo, and Osun. The Cities are in Abuja, Kano, and Lagos.
“The funding for these projects comes from the N50 billion 2023 Supplementary Budget of the Federal Ministry of Housing and Urban Development. We have already awarded contracts for 3,500 housing units in thirteen states, demonstrating our commitment to rolling out these developments nationwide.
“States not covered under the 2023 supplementary budget will be included in the 2024 budget and I urge all state governments yet to provide land for these projects to do so promptly,” according to Dangiwa.
On his part, Katsina State Governor, Malam Dikko Umaru Radda, said that, “this project represents a tangible step towards achieving our goal of ensuring every citizen has access to decent and affordable housing.”