By Luminous Jannamike
ABUJA — Former President of the Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria, REDAN, Dr Aliyu Wamakko, has urged the Federal Government to declare a state of emergency on soaring building costs rather than rising rents, saying spiralling construction costs, not landlords, are driving Nigeria’s housing crisis.
With rents climbing beyond the reach of many Nigerians, Wamakko said the answer is not rent controls but cheaper housing production, arguing that lowering the cost of construction would naturally make accommodation more affordable.
Speaking to journalists in Abuja on Thursday, Wamakko urged the Federal Government to reduce the cost of building materials, expand access to affordable long-term finance, strengthen local manufacturing and support policies that encourage large-scale housing development, insisting these measures would address the root cause of rising rents.
“Nigeria’s housing challenge is, first and foremost, a construction cost crisis. High rents are merely the visible symptom of a deeper economic problem. The real drivers are the soaring costs of land acquisition, building materials, labour, infrastructure and financing,” Wamakko said.
