Delta State Unveils Plan for 500-Unit Affordable Housing Project to Tackle Rent Hike

The Delta State Government has unveiled plans to develop over 500 affordable housing units in a strategic move to reduce the high cost of rent across the state.

Speaking on Wednesday in Asaba, the state capital, the Commissioner for Housing, Mr. Godknows Angele, announced that the project will be executed in partnership with the Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria (REDAN) through a public-private partnership (PPP) arrangement.

“As a government, we are engaging in PPP to crash the rising house rents and by God’s grace, we shall build a low-cost housing scheme in my time,” Angele said.

According to him, the housing initiative is part of a larger statewide program that will begin with 50 units in each of the 10 federal constituencies, to be developed in phases.

“The governor has directed that 50 housing units each be constructed in the 10 federal constituencies in the state. Thereafter, local government by local governments, all in a bid to address accommodation shortage across the state,” he added.

Angele also revealed that the Ministry of Housing, in collaboration with a Federal Government parastatal, will soon commission 30 one-bedroom apartments at 181 Amphibian Battalion in Agbor, Ika South Local Government Area.

He listed other ongoing housing projects across the state, including; 50-unit social housing scheme in Ozoro, 50 units in Kwale, 50 units in Owa-Oyibu, initiated by former Governor Ifeanyi Okowa for civil servants

Angele emphasized the need to incorporate social infrastructure such as schools, markets, and electricity in these developments.

“We discovered that each of the 50 units of buildings can accommodate 200 families, so you must have a market, schools, electricity, and other facilities. We brought all the bills to review them at the current cost,” he said.

Regulation of Rent Agents and Landlords

To address the escalating rent prices in Delta State, the ministry has commenced the registration of housing agents and plans to regulate their activities through a proposed task force.

“We will soon inaugurate a task force against agents who charge exorbitant accommodation rents in the state. A bill would be sent to the state House of Assembly to regulate the soaring rents in the metropolitan area,” he stated.

He further hinted that the government may apply moral persuasion on landlords to reduce rent and promote access to affordable housing.

Additionally, Angele confirmed that the state recently renovated the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) office in Asaba and intervened in a 40-unit self-contained apartment complex at Admiralty University, Ibusa  a project that began during the tenure of former Governor Okowa.

Earlier during a courtesy visit, the Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Journalists Chapel, Ifeanyi Olannye, urged the commissioner to find urgent solutions to the rent crisis, particularly in Asaba and its environs.

According to Olannye, “The state had been ranked top in rentage cost among other states in the country.”

PUNCH