Wemabod 2026 Outlook Canvasses Regional Approach to Inclusive Housing, Sustainable Urban Growth

Bennett Oghifo

Stakeholders in Nigeria’s real estate and urban development ecosystem recently converged in Lagos for the 2026 Wemabod Real Estate Outlook, with a strong call for coordinated regional action to unlock land and infrastructure as the foundation for inclusive housing and sustainable urban growth.

The annual platform, hosted by Wemabod Limited, brought together policymakers, financiers, developers, regional development institutions and professionals under the theme: “Unlocking Land and Infrastructure for Inclusive Housing: A Regional Agenda for Sustainable Urban Growth.” The event underscored growing consensus that Nigeria’s housing deficit can no longer be addressed through fragmented city-based interventions, but through deliberate, large-scale, infrastructure-led regional planning.

Welcoming participants, Chairman of Wemabod Limited, Engr. Nureni Oladipo Adisa, described the 2026 Outlook as a call to action at a pivotal moment in the nation’s urban narrative. According to him, cities across the region are grappling with a paradox of economic expansion alongside widening housing inequality, urban sprawl, infrastructure strain and land administration systems that constrain affordability.

“The question before us is stark,” Adisa said. “Will our cities be engines of exclusive prosperity, or can they become beacons of inclusive opportunity?” He stressed that sustainable growth is impossible without inclusive housing, just as inclusive housing cannot be achieved without unlocking land and deploying infrastructure in a strategic and coordinated manner.

He explained that unlocking land requires moving beyond fragmented plots to cohesive, well-planned communities, activating underutilised spaces and streamlining cumbersome land processes to prioritise affordability and accessibility. Unlocking infrastructure, he added, means synchronising housing with transportation, power, water and digital networks from inception, in order to build connected, resilient and liveable communities.

Adisa further emphasised the importance of a regional agenda, noting that housing markets and urban challenges do not respect municipal boundaries. “We must think, plan and act regionally,” he said, calling for collaboration across cities, towns and states to deliver a balanced and equitable urban ecosystem.

In his welcome address, Managing Director of Wemabod Limited, ESV. Bashir Oladunni, traced the evolution of the Real Estate Outlook since its launch in 2023, noting its steady growth from about 150 participants to over 2,000 stakeholders by 2025. According to him, the growth reflects increasing trust in the platform as a solution-driven forum for shaping Nigeria’s real estate future.

Oladunni explained that while earlier themes focused on navigating macroeconomic volatility and positioning real estate as a catalyst for economic recovery, the 2026 theme represents a shift toward building enduring solutions. “Housing is not merely a social obligation,” he said. “It is a foundation for economic productivity, social stability and sustainable urban growth.”

He identified land accessibility and infrastructure deficits as the two major structural constraints to affordable housing in Nigeria, arguing that without properly titled land and enabling infrastructure, housing cannot scale and cities cannot thrive.

According to him, Regional Development Commissions represent one of Nigeria’s strongest institutional platforms for addressing these constraints. He said the commissions are uniquely positioned to aggregate large land assets, coordinate infrastructure at scale, de-risk corridor-based developments and align housing delivery with regional economic priorities.

“For inclusive housing to succeed, development must increasingly shift from congested city centres to well-planned regional corridors anchored by transport infrastructure and economic activity,” Oladunni said. He noted that such an approach opens new opportunities for developers and investors, supports job creation and balanced growth for government, and creates bankable housing pipelines for financiers.

Reaffirming Wemabod’s long-term commitment, he listed the company’s focus areas to include infrastructure-led housing, responsible land unlocking through partnerships, institutional rental and mixed-income housing models, as well as sustainable and climate-resilient development.

Also speaking, Group Chairman of Odu’a Investment Company Limited, Otunba Bimbo Ashiru, described housing as sitting at the intersection of economic inclusion, urban productivity, social stability and intergenerational equity. He noted that while housing demand continues to rise, supply remains constrained by policy-driven challenges such as land administration inefficiencies, infrastructure gaps and institutional fragmentation.

Ashiru said the 2026 theme deliberately confronts these issues by linking land reform, infrastructure provision and inclusive delivery models that work for low- and middle-income Nigerians, not just the top end of the market. He stressed that the future of real estate in Nigeria will be defined by systems thinking, where land, infrastructure, finance, regulation and governance are aligned to solve real-world problems.

The Outlook also featured a keynote address by former Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, GCON, whose participation, according to organisers, added intellectual clarity and policy depth to the conversation on land reform, infrastructure coordination and inclusive growth.

Participants agreed that the conversations initiated at the forum must translate into better policies, smarter capital allocation and stronger public-private collaboration, with the ultimate goal of delivering affordable, accessible and sustainable homes for Nigerians.

As the 2026 Wemabod Real Estate Outlook concluded, the overarching message was clear: inclusive housing at scale is achievable, but only through deliberate regional planning, efficient land administration, coordinated infrastructure investment and sustained collaboration among all stakeholders.