FMBN Funds 1,590 Homes, Disburses N9.5bn Loans to 10,601 Nasarawa Workers

• Gov Sule says partnership will deliver more affordable houses

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja

The Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) has disclosed that it has so far financed 1,590 housing units across Nasarawa State and disbursed over N9.5 billion in home renovation loans to 10,601 civil servants.

Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the bank, Shehu Osidi, revealed this while receiving the Governor of Nasarawa State, Abdullahi Sule, who was on a visit to the bank’s headquarters in Abuja.

Osidi said the interventions form part of FMBN’s partnership with the Nasarawa state government to expand access to affordable housing and improve the welfare of workers in the state.

“To date, the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria has financed over 1,590 housing units across Nasarawa State. Beyond housing construction, we have disbursed over N9.5 billion in home renovation loans to 10,601 civil servants in the state, enabling thousands of hardworking families to improve the quality of their homes,” Osidi said.

The FMBN boss added that the bank is financing mortgages for Nasarawa civil servants to acquire houses under the state government’s Owner-Occupier Housing Scheme.

“As of today, N94.7 million has been disbursed with respect to 29 beneficiaries under the scheme. Furthermore, the bank has refunded over N1.02 billion in National Housing Fund contributions to 5,462 retirees from Nasarawa State, ensuring that workers who faithfully contributed to the scheme received their benefits upon retirement,” he said.

According to him, the interventions demonstrate that the bank’s partnership with Nasarawa extends beyond housing construction to improving the living conditions of residents,  disclosing that construction at the Lafia site had reached an advanced stage, while work on other first-phase locations would commence before the end of the third quarter of the year.

In addition, Osidi reaffirmed the bank’s commitment to President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Housing Programme, noting that FMBN is funding housing projects nationwide and providing a N100 billion off-taker guarantee to support their delivery.

He highlighted the bank’s recent operational performance, revealing that National Housing Fund (NHF) collections rose from N103 billion in 2024 to a record N152.4 billion in 2025, representing more than 48 per cent growth over the previous highest annual collection.

He added that more than 300,000 new contributors had been enrolled into the NHF scheme in the past two years, while NHF refunds increased from N13.2 billion paid to 40,426 beneficiaries in 2023 to N15.6 billion paid to 55,068 beneficiaries in 2025.

Furthermore, he disclosed that the bank financed 6,911 affordable housing units in 2025, representing 96 per cent of its annual target of 7,200 units.

In an interview, Osidi described Nasarawa as one of FMBN’s strongest partners in housing development, recalling that Nasarawa was the first state to allocate land for the Renewed Hope Housing Project after  Tinubu assumed office.

On his part, the Nasarawa State Governor, Sule, described FMBN as a dependable partner in the state’s development agenda and expressed confidence that the collaboration would deepen as Nasarawa continues to attract investments.

“When you asked me to consider the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria as a dependable partner, I want to tell you we already consider you a dependable partner. We already believe there is much more we can do together,” the governor said

Speaking with journalists after the meeting, Sule said Nasarawa State had laid a solid foundation for large-scale housing development through the establishment of the Nasarawa Geographic Information Service (NAGIS).

He explained that the agency has completed the mapping of the state, identified suitable areas for development and outlined the infrastructure required to support housing projects.

“We set up NAGIS to establish a complete mapping of Nasarawa State, identify areas that can be developed and determine the infrastructure required to make housing projects possible. We have already established relationships with a number of housing developers, and today we have projects such as the Peninsula Housing Project in Masaka and the Technology Village in Mararaba, where several houses are already being developed,” Sule said.

The governor said the state’s partnership with FMBN would deliver affordable housing not only in Lafia but also in Akwanga, Keffi, Toto and Gudi, particularly for low-income earners.

“These projects are driven by the increasing investments coming into Nasarawa State, our proximity to the Federal Capital Territory and the housing deficit in the country. Our objective is to make affordable housing available to workers and other Nigerians who can afford these homes,” he added.

On the proposed N550 billion recapitalisation of FMBN, Sule urged the federal government to look beyond public funding by attracting private sector investment.

“If we want to achieve this goal, we need to go beyond the federal government. I come from the private sector, and I believe there are many Nigerians and institutions with investible funds that will support the bank if they are convinced the resources will be well managed,” he emphasised.