Separate housing ministry from works, operators tell FG

Housing industry experts are advocating for the establishment of an independent Ministry of Housing in order to guarantee the efficient development and execution of appropriate policies.

They argued that the separation of housing from works ministry became necessary owing to the government’s failure to bridge the housing gap in the country in the past four years.

According to the Executive Secretary of the Association of Housing Corporations of Nigeria, Toye Eniola, housing requires serious attention and reasonable concentration on its activities will bring about the desired change.

He said, “At this point, separation seems to be the best option. Housing is a large department and requires serious attention. Merging it with the Ministry of Works has not given the best results.

“In the last four years, concentration was only on roads with little on housing. If the ministry is standing alone, it will give reasonable concentration on activities that will improve the sector.

“If the Ministry of Housing stands alone, it will be better positioned for service delivery. The failure of the past year is enough reason to demand a stand-alone Ministry of Housing, and the incoming government should brood over that if they want to resolve some of the issues bedevilling the industry.”

On his part, the Managing Director of COPEN group, Ugochukwu Chime, noted that “The creation of a substantive Housing Ministry is critical to any progress in the humongous area of our national life.

“Housing and related matters, including real estate, are big enough to be a full-fledged ministry and not subsumed under the Ministry of Works in any country.”

He explained that the creation of housing ministry would give room for a clear mandate for superintending over any issues related to housing directly and indirectly.

Also, the Managing Partner of Ubosi Eleh & Co, Chudi Ubosi, said works and housing were separate entities and should be treated as such.

He said, “Housing on its own is crucial and should be allowed to play its proper role. Works is also a huge ministry if we take it seriously.”