Naomi Gabriel —
A housing finance professional, Kunle Faleti has said the Nigerian government should continue its efforts towards creating an enabling environment for the private sector and direct foreign investments into the industry. In an interview with the Nigerian Tribune, he added that these initiatives will include improving upon the ease of doing business.
Faleti who is also a real estate expert added that solving some of the issues confronting the real estate sector in terms of affordable housing to enhance development, he said that it will require “a combination of efforts and collaboration” among stakeholders.
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Government should continue its efforts towards creating an enabling environment for the private sector and direct foreign investments into the sector, he said.
“Such initiatives include improving upon the ease of doing business; promoting tax breaks on importation of housing related construction/ building materials; implementing in full existing interventions on housing finance such as the Nigerian Housing Finance Program and Family Homes Funds.
“There is no one cap that fits all solutions. It will require a combination of efforts and collaboration among stakeholders. This will take some time before the impact is felt.
“The liquidity fund that saw to the emergence/creation of the Nigerian Mortgage Refinance Company (NMRC) is still struggling because not all the components are fully implemented. The other three components (Mortgage Guarantee Insurance, Housing Micro-Finance and Technical Assistance) are yet to be fully implemented.
“If all the four are operating simultaneously, we will have single digit interest rates on home loans.
Faleti also stated that it is possible to enhance affordable housing delivery without passing into laws some of the pending housing bills in the National Assembly and faulted the country’s reliance on imported building materials.
“Yes it is possible. People (policy makers, stakeholders and operators) are lazy and don’t want to think outside the box. There is no will or drive to succeed. India, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Jordan experienced and are still experiencing similar challenges as Nigeria, but they have been able to find a way out while waiting for laws and ordinances to be passed or amended.
“Why relying on imported materials? He asked.
“The country must invest in and fund research for locally produced building materials. As a matter of policy, it can introduce high taxes to discourage importation of luxury items.
“Our universities and other higher institutions of learning should collaborate with government owned research institutions and professional associations such as the Nigerian Building and Road Research Institute (NIBBRI), Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN) and Nigerian Society of Engineers, etc to develop local content”, he concluded.
