Nigerians invited to apply for the National Housing Programme as FG launches online portal

Nigerians are encouraged to apply for the National Housing Programme (NHP) in the 34 states of the country following the launch of its online portal, https:// nhp.worksandhousing.gov.ng, by the Minister of Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, which took place at the Conference Room of the Ministry in Mabushi, Abuja.

There are over 5,000 houses up for sale across 34 states of the Federation, which construction will generate jobs, and foster economic growth. Nigerians can apply online to buy the available 5,000 plus housing units, ranging from 1, 2 to 3 bedroom bungalows and blocks of flats in any location of their choice. The ceremony, which was attended by prominent stakeholders and media executives including the President Nigeria Guild of Editors, Mr. Mustapha Isah, Fashola emphasized that the decision by the Ministry to sell the available houses online was to bring credibility to the exercise and reduce human intervention while giving all categories of buyers an equal advantage.

According to the minister, the findings, he said, were that while in the Northern part of the country there was preference for bungalow and large expanse of land which encouraged building horizontally, in the Southern part, there seemed to be acceptance for blocks of flats and lack of space which made building vertically necessary. 

He stated that the current National Housing Programme is a pilot scheme, among others, to galvanize private sector participation, the minister explained further, “We applied for land from the states and we set out to do a demonstration or a pilot programme because we wanted to validate what we saw and then build a pilot scheme”.

He also pointed out that, “It was also a way to implement our Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP), as the country was in recession at the inception of this programme. The minister added that no foreign contractor was engaged in the project, as it was not only an opportunity for nation building but an opportunity for the contractors to sustain their staff.