Stakeholders Reveal Strategies to Crash High Cost of Housing, Rent
Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt
Stakeholders at a real estate exhibition and investment summit held in Port Harcourt, Rivers State for the South-east and South-south zone have revealed strategies to crashing the biting high-cost of building and rent in the country.
The stakeholders urged the federal government and the Rivers State Government on commitment to reforming the housing sector, as a way of addressing Nigeria’s worsening housing deficit.
The summit organised by the BusinessDay Media Limited with theme; “Addressing Nigeria’s Housing Deficit with Innovative Solutions,” brought together, developers, policymakers, financiers, and real estate strategists to chart a path forward for the Housing sector.
Speakers and participants including Mustapha Njie of TAF Africa Global, My-ACE China of Mayor of Housing Ltd, Bolaji Oshobukola of Odibola Properties Ltd, Onyekachi Nzekwesi of Pineleaf Estate and Property Company, others appealed to the Minister of Housing and Urban Development to urgently execute the suggestions and recommendations from the summit.
In his remarks, Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara described the housing sector as a “multifaceted engine for societal growth and economic development.”
Represented by the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Dagogo Wokoma, Governor Fubara said his administration is committed to partnering with innovators and stakeholders to address housing shortages, generate employment, and raise living standards.
He identified real estate as a vital driver of economic growth, urban transformation, and wealth creation, adding that the state recognizes opportunities within the sector as a strategic tool for improving quality of life.
“Our administration is committed to creating an enabling environment for investors and stakeholders in the real estate ecosystem through policy reforms, infrastructure development, and stronger public-private partnerships,” Fubara said.
Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Musa Dangiwa, represented by the Federal Head of Lands, Queen Tekarhi, said the ministry is working to create a more conducive environment to support housing development initiatives nationwide.
My-ACE China of Mayor of Housing Ltd, who articulated the measures in an interview after the summit, said the housing deficit in Nigeria is getting worse because the population is growing at a faster rate than developers can provide housing, now at 22 million.
On solution, the real estate success strategist, called for gas-powered industrial parks for indigenous building materials to crash cost of power.
He said: “Indigenous building materials must be produced through what the government can call housing free trade zones with zero tax and free duty plus low power cost as indigenous building materials parks. As long as foreign exchange rate is high, anything imported is out of the reach of the common man.”
China called for adoption of non-political PPPs where government provides untitled land and handles titling and acquisition costs. “When land acquisition and titling is taken off the equation, 40% of housing costs has already been removed,” China noted, citing Rivers State as an example.
He further proposed improved access to finance and global funds for developers, stating that banks rarely lend to real estate. “If the government does these three things, real estate will be so attractive that everybody will jump into it, supply will surge and prices will fall,” he added.
The Mayor of Housing boss, also pitched Port Harcourt to investors, saying the city has been “hidden” and must be opened up. With a projected 30% housing growth prospect for 2026 compared to Lagos at 20% and Abuja at 15%, he said the region is “ripe, eager and green for business.”
China commended BusinessDay Media Limited for kickstarting the housing summit in the region and gave tips to make it better and bigger. “Business Day is the biggest business newspaper in Africa. I only want BusinessDay to leverage their strength and bring other media houses to cover the event for the world to see the size of opportunity in the region.”
Keynote speaker, Mr. Mustapha Njie, Group Managing Director of TAF Africa Global and Managing Director of Greater TAF Nigeria Ltd, stressed the need for a forward-looking sector anchored on accessible financing, public-private partnerships, and removal of bureaucratic bottlenecks tied to property titling.
Njie also advocated new cities like Greater TAF City in Nigeria, increased local production of building materials, strategic urbanisation, and adoption of eco-friendly smart city concepts.
Earlier, General Manager, Business Development and Partnerships, South East and South South, BusinessDay Media Limited, Dr. Patrick Ijegbai, said affordable housing remains one of the most critical challenges facing governments, corporate organisations, and individuals globally.
Ijegbai noted that the South-East and South-South regions are “littered with several abandoned and uncompleted public and private housing projects,” with challenges spanning funding, land acquisition, regulation, and the environment.
He called for collective action, describing the summit’s theme as apt, while expressing confidence that the calibre of participants would yield actionable outcomes.
