ABSTRACT
The world of building Industry is very wide and reaches which covers all areas like production, Building maintenance, project management, project monitoring and evaluation, facilities and viability studies and building surveying etc. and there is room in its for every person who want to learn, experience and practices to see above all how to provide good shelter for the good of humanity and the occupants of that house. The field of building need builders who are experienced to carry out the duties, responsibilities and challenges of the profession and its vital role in the economy and growth of a nation to be able to produce building for sell or rent it to the people who needs them. This project aim at providing fact and information for meaningful study and understanding of the myriads of factors that influence low-cost housing delivery which is the center point of the Second Republic housing policy in Nigeria. In the design and methodology of this study primary and secondary data were sued. This project surveys the low-cost housing delivery in the second housing policy of Nigeria has fared, a case study of Imo State. Also what led to the promulgation of the low-cost housing policy during Nigeria’s Second Republic is another point of focus.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the study
Public policy emerges from decision-making, which is the most deliberate aspect of social conduct. Policy deals with a variety of sectored issues ranging from defence, health and agriculture to education, among others. One of its components is housing policy. In the past, in Nigeria, the provision of housing has traditionally been the responsibility of the private sector. Public housing has for a considerable period been limited to the provision of housing for the senior staff in the secluded area called Government Reservation Area (GRA), provision of barracks for soldiers, police and quarters for clerks usually called clerks quarter. Public involvement in housing became only noticeable in the late 1950. Nigeria is a rapidly developing country with enormous need for the provision of housing for the teeming populace. It is therefore not surprising to find in the world today, that government in order to become popular and be acceptable among their citizenry usually places as top priority housing development in their National Development Plan. The United Nations Organisations “such as United Nation Conference on Human Settlements (UNCHS) otherwise called Habitat 11 have over the years pursued a variety of programmes and policies aimed at resolving the issue of inadequacy and shortfall of housing stock” (Oyejide, 2001). The need for housing policy in Nigeria became an important issue only when the country achieved independence in 1960. An attempt will be made to understand the policy by studying various governments’ actions and public pronouncements on housing. As governments and individuals struggle to improve the economic, educational and social condition of their communities, households find the need to recondition their family affairs, and to readjust their living situations. These circumstances would under conditions of accelerating economic growth for all, dictate a steady pattern of shift either from the occupation of single rooms to flats or from older and dilapidated flats to more modern ones, or to even modern bungalows. It is perhaps in full recognition of this crucial role of the human habitat in individual and national development that part of the economic objectives under the Fundamental Objectives and Directive Principles of State Policy, entrenched in Chapter II of the Nigerian Constitution required the State to direct its policy towards ensuring that suitable and adequate shelter is provided for ALL
citizens, (FMI, 1979:9). The Federal Government, aware of the importance of housing, has encouraged
the establishment of Housing Authorities, Institutions and Agencies charged with the responsibility of housing the citizens of this nation. Such institutions and agencies set up by the Federal Government are “the Federal Ministry of Housing, Urban Development and Environment, the Federal Housing Authority, the Nigerian Building and Road Research Institute (NBRRI), and the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria, among others” (Bamai, 1988), The Housing Policy in Nigeria became necessary in order to provide housing accommodation affordable to the general public. It was formulated and enunciated in 1980 after a Ministry of Housing and Environment was set up and it was to accord priority for those in the low-income groups. An adequate understanding of the Housing Policy therefore depends on the prior mastery of the concept of policy itself. Policy, characterized as instrument for the use of some form of centralized planning which government protects its attributes is significant for development. It is a proposed course of action of a person, group or government within a given
environment, providing obstacles and opportunities which the policy was proposed to utilize and overcome in an effort to reach a goal or realize an objective or a purpose (Friedrich, 1963). It is the official actions or course of actions that are goal-oriented, taken with the aim of solving problems that led to its initiation, adoption and implementation. In the formulation of policy, all relevant information and recommendations are usually passed upwards, and even after a given policy has been promulgated, there should be a regular feedback of results to confirm that policy as being right or suggest a need for revised policy. The second democratic experiment in Nigeria began on October 1,1979 as an
earlier experiment failed on January 15, 1966, following the seizure of power by the Army after five years of chaotic civil political administration. In September 1978, the military government lifted the ban on partisan politics imposed since August 31,1966. The pre-election resulted in the formation of five political parties, namely: the National Party of Nigeria (N.P.N.), the Unity Party of Nigeria (U.P.N.), the Nigeria People’s Party (N.P.P.), the Great Nigeria People’s Party (G.N.P.P.) and the People’s Redemption Party (P.R.P.). “The election resulted in the N.P.N. as the Fulani party winning an overall plurality of votes in nineteen (19) States. The U.P.N. as the Yoruba party came second, the N.P.P. as the Igbo party came third, the P.R.P. and the G.N.P.P. represented the Kanuri and Hausa parties respectively trailed behind” (Njoku, 2004). It was on that note that Alhaji Shehu Shagari of the National Party of Nigeria
assumed office on October 1, 1979 as the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Nigeria. This was a democratic regime. Powell Jnr listing the features of democracy states that “the legitimacy of the government rests on a claim to represent the desires of its citizens, that is, the claim of government’s obedience to its laws is based on the government’s assertion to do what the people want; and that citizens and leaders enjoy basic freedom of speech, press, assembly and organization” (Encyclopaedia of Social Sciences, (1829). The desire of the federal and state governments in Nigeria to “improve housing conditions and ownership is now well orchestrated by their public announcement. Provision of ‘shelter for all’ has also become a cardinal point of the NPN federal government” (Mohammed, 1980). In April,1980, following the National Council on Housing and Environment Conference in Port Harcourt, the government of Shehu Shagari embarked on a ‘housing for all’ programme for the country. All governments in Nigeria since independence highlighted housing as a major priority. Unfortunately for over 47 years of its independence, Nigeria is yet to develop a vibrant mortgage market and houses continue to be provided through the tortuous traditional method of buying land and building over some years, which could be an individual's entire life time. In many cases such buildings are left uncompleted or individuals have to deplete their entire life savings in order to
build a home. One of the major housing policy initiatives was the Policy on Affordable Housing that was initiated in 1979 by the Shehu Shagari Administration. The policy though laudable was unable to meet the nation’s housing needs because it was based on the unsustainable tenet that houses will be provided by government (this remains the anomaly that we must resolve). The implementation of the 2002 housing policy reforms was a promising beginning, but a lot remains to be done.
In a recent news report on the Nigerian Housing Sector aired on African Independent Television (AIT), it was stated that between 1973 and 2006, the Federal Housing Authority (FHA) built only 30,000 housing units nationwide. According to Mr. Tunde Ipinmosho of the Federal Housing Authority (FHA), the current housing deficit is about 12 million homes. If we take the current population of 140 million Nigerians as reported by the National Population Commission after last year's census exercise and assume 30 percent of the population as working adults we have 42 million estimated working adults; assuming about 45 percent or 18.9 million of the working adults qualify for mortgage loans, and assume an average house final selling price at about Naira 2.8 million for a 2-bedroom flat, the possible size of the mortgage market is close to Naira 53 trillion.
Imo State, my case study, is one of the then nineteen States of the Federal
Republic of Nigeria, (see Appendices I and II – maps of Nigeria and Imo State).The State was created when the former East Central State of Nigeria was split into Anambra and Imo State on 3rd February, 1976 by the Murtala/Obasanjo regime. It has a population density of 590 persons per square kilometer” (MOF, 2000). Its population at the end of 2006 National Census was 3.9 million. With the inception of the Second Republic in 1979, the Federal Government of Alhaji Shehu Shagari decided to construct low cost houses throughout the federation. According to the President, the goal of his administration in the area of housing was to, as much as possible, make sure that every Nigerian had access to a decent and affordable accommodation in a clean environment(Imo, 1985). The decision was borne out of the desire to provide affordable houses to low-income earners in various parts of the country. In Imo State, the Federal Low-Cost Housing Scheme was located at Egbu and
Umuguma in Owerri Local Government and the eleven other Local Governments in Imo State (excluding nine local Governments that are now part of Abia State). Out of the 8,000 housing units slated for Imo State by the Shagari Administration, a total of seven hundred and eighty-one (781) houses were constructed. Those in the rural areas were one bedroom bungalows while those at Owerri – the capital of Imo State consisted essentially of three housing types – one-bedroom, two bedroom and three-bedroom, all semi-detached bungalows. “The Estate covered about 25 hectares and each house was designed to accommodate two families separated by a party wall “(Igbozuruike, 1988). A total of twelve contractors were employed to execute this housing programme while the Federal Ministry of Housing and Environment engaged the services of two firms of architects to supervise the project on its behalf. The form of tender adopted was ostensibly open tender but in reality, the contractors were awarded to members of the defunct National Party of Nigeria. The low cost houses on completion were allocated by the Presidential Liaison
Officer in the State, on behalf of the Federal Government to the occupants not on rental but on owner-occupier basis. In the allocation exercise, “only the indigenes of Imo State and non-indigenes that have been resident in the State for at least three years were entitled to apply for the houses. This was on the condition that their annual income did not exceed N5000 (five thousand Naira)” (Igbozuruike, 2004).
The one-bedroom single family unit was sold for N6,000.00 (Six thousand
Naira) while the three-bedroom single family dwelling was sold for N15,000.00 (fifteen thousand Naira). This is against the sums of N6,077.68 and N14,714.14 which these two units cost the government to erect. The allotees were required to pay an initial deposit of ten percent of the cost of the houses and subsequent monthly installment payments for twenty years until the cost was defrayed. The occupants made these payments by cheque or cash to the government through the Federal Mortgage Bank, Owerri Branch. It was discovered that many of the allotees sublet their houses to tenants who paid them rent. The two-bedroom housing units which were abandoned but completed much later in the year 2003 were sold at N200,000.00. Policy evaluation, as a functional activity, is as old as policy itself. Policy maker and administrators have always made judgments concerning the worth or effects of particular policies, programmes and projects. Evaluation is the act of considering or examining something in order to judge its value, quality, importance, extent or condition.
It involves defined goals and specific measures of impact. It is a productive entry point for analysis as it inevitably draws one into problem definition, goal setting and other functional activities. The programme impact evaluation type – an assessment of overall programme impact and effectiveness will be used in this study. It will involve “the establishment of units of measures of implementation, assessment of the costs and benefits and actual accomplishment, justifying its existence as well as proposingchanges” (Anderson, 1975:133).
It is against this background that the researcher intends to focus on the need to
determine the extent to which the Federal Government Housing Policy Implementation in Imo State (1979-2017) was successful in achieving the basic objectives.
STATEMENT OF PROBLEM
Rapid urbanization due to high economic growth rate appears to generate arange of problems, usually of national significance for most developing countries like
Nigeria. The recognition of this problems as well as strategies to cope with them has, in the case of some countries, led to the formation of a cluster of development policies which as a group form some sort of national urbanization policies. Nigeria currently seems to lack an established tradition on how to formulate housing policy under civilian dispensations. No serious study has been conducted to establish how housing policy was made during the First and Second Republics. This might be due to the high degree of political instability that has besieged the country since it achieved independence. For example, “between 1960-1985, Nigeria witnessed nine regimes; five of them were military regimes. Consequently, housing policy formulation had been dominated by the military and their political appointees. When the country witnessed the first military coup, elected civilians were carefully eliminated from public policy formulation, the exception being the short interlude of civilian regime during the Second Republic (1979- 1983)”, (Haruna, 1987:31-32).
To own a comfortable home as a reward for hard work and self sacrifice has
long been “an unattainable goal for the majority of workers, particularly the low-income group and the peasants in the rural areas” (Gana, 1988:14). A review of past policies and programmes of both public and private sectors reveals that overall national housing delivery appears to be inadequate. Effective solution to housing delivery is yet to be found. This becomes more critical when viewed against the background of both urban and rural areas, where housing need is dominated by the poor and low-income group, who constitute an estimated 70% of the population. Nigeria appears to be in the throes of shelter crises. A large number of the population live in slums and squatter settlement while sizeable segment of both urban and rural population live in poor shelter, in unhealthy, ill-maintained houses. The situation is graphic enough. A look at the housing Policy of Nigeria’s Second Republic reveals deep-rooted constraints. These include lack of sound leadership as well as competent personnel, inadequate mortgage institutions, duplication of responsibilities, lack of autonomy, acute housing shortage and lack of affordability, corruption, lack of due process mechanism, lack of easy access to land with infrastructure, high cost of building materials, high cost of funds for housing, lack of sustained research into raw materials used in the housing industry, weak enforcement of contracts, government laws and policies, uncontrolled population explosion and its resultant uncontrolled housing demands with illegal construction of shanties, economic recession , etc.
The urgency and necessity of this housing problems call for concern by all. The
government is supposed “to harness the political, social and economic resources in
Nigeria to improve the standard of living of her people as enjoyed in the more advanced countries of Europe, Asia and America” (Hanson, 1990:76). The housing policies in Nigeria were supposed to have provided accommodation services to the masses at cheap and affordable prices, but from what is available or obtainable, or judging from the plethora of commentaries from many scholars, like Nwosu (1981:44), Abrams (1964), Riggs (1963:18), Dale (1941:46), Blitz (1956:82), Oyediran (1980), Marris (1970:19), it appears that this dream is not realizable.
1.3 RESEARCH QUESTION
Consequently, the questions that will guide this study are
- What led to the promulgation of the low-cost housing policy during Nigeria’s Second Republic?
- Did the Second Republic Housing policy (low cost housing policy)implementation improve the housing situation in Imo State?
- what are the challenges of low cost housing delivery in imo state?
RESEARCH OBJECTIVE
As a result of the identified problems, the general objective of this study is to
Evaluate challenges of low cost housing delivery in nigeria, especially in imo state. To achieve this aim, the researcher has adopted the low cost housing programme of ahaji shehu shagari who was at the helm of affairs during this period (1979-1983) and how and how it was implemented in imo state.
The specific objectives are:
- To find out what led to the promulgation of the low-cost housing policy
during Nigeria’s Second Republic?
2 To ascertain whether the implementation of this Federal Government
Housing Policy improved the housing situation in Imo State.
3. To find out the Challenges Of Low Cost Housing Delivery in Imo State.
1.5 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
To the writer’s knowledge, the strategy of housing policy implementation in
Nigeria during the Second Republic has remained a paradox both to the experts and laymen. This is because Nigeria has not established a stable political transition in spite of these almost five decades of existence. This situation was worsened not only by constant and interminable military coups, but also by lack of indigenous political culture and the short interlude of civilian democratic regimes in the country.
This study is significant because in the writer’s opinion it intends to highlight the
roles of the Legislature, the Executive and the interest groups in policy making and may establish the fact that most studies on policy formulation and implementation concentrated on the advanced countries and only a very few in the developing nations.Again, those who have studied policy formulation in Nigeria have largely concentrated on the military regimes where there is no popular forum for interest articulation, interest aggregation and political communication (Igwe, 1988:17).
Theoretically, this study may not only extend the study of housing policy implementation in Nigeria, but also may advance the use and application of Group
Theory to the analysis of housing policy implementation in the developing countries. The study also hopes to sharpen the insight of African scholars to the unexplored areas in the field of housing policy studies in Africa and Nigeria in general and Imo State in particular.
On the social aspect, to the best of the researcher’s knowledge, the study would
contribute to the existing stock of knowledge and reveal to Government and the general public the extent the Second Republic accomplished the aims and objectives of its Housing Policy in Nigeria, especially in Imo State and its fundamental deficiencies. This will contribute in filling the inadequacies or gap in literature. The study to the writer’s opinion may be useful to politicians in the subsequent
Republics, policy makers, policy implementers, and the public policy experts in Nigerian Universities. It hopes to reveal to them how housing policy was made in the first and second Republics and this it is hoped would help them to device the best approach to the issue in the future. The study may also be useful to foreign embassies, multinational corporations and international organizations that are interested in National Housing Policy of the Second Republic.
THE SCOPE OF THE STUDY:
The scope of study covers Challenges of Low Cost Housing Delivery in Nigeria in Imo State is chosen because the researcher was aware of the objectives of the housing policy and partially observed its execution and implementation in Imo State. The result obtained from the research may not be exhaustive, but may give an insight into the extent this housing policy was implemented in Imo State. This study was limited by unverifiability of some facts due to passage of time (with attendant change in personnel), inaccessibility to useful records for fear of
exposing some classified information about the Office. The reliability and validity of the sources of both primary and secondary data are limitations since the study is subject to weakness inherent in the interview guide and questionnaire, for example, bias in responses cannot be ruled out. The researcher spent much time explaining to the respondents, what they were required to do. Despite these limitations, the researcher continued the work with data collected, which were enough for the work.
