FEDERAL GOVERNMENT POLICIES ON THE NIGERIAN HOUSING MODEL

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1   Background of the Study

Housing is a crucial basic need of every human being just as food and clothing (Aribigbola, 2006:53). It is very fundamental to the welfare, survival and health of man (Fadamiro et al, 2004). Hence, housing is one of the best indicators of a person’s standard of living and his place in the society. The location and type of housing can determine or affect the status of man in the society. Kehinde (2010) noted that shelter is central to the existence of man. He submitted further that housing involves access to land, shelter and the necessary amenities to make the shelter functional, convenient, aesthetically pleasing, safe and hygienic. Hence, unsanitary, unhygienic, unsafe and inadequate housing can affect the security, physical health and privacy of man. Invariably, the performance of the housing sector is one of the yardsticks by which the health of a nation is measured (see Amdii, 1993; Angel, 2000; Blunt and Dawling, 2006; Charles, 2003; and Sulyman, 2000). The World Health Organisation (1961) stated that a good house should have the following items:

i.  A good roof to keep out the rain.

ii.   Good walls and doors to protect against bad weather and to keep out animals.

iii.    Sunshades all around the house to protect it from direct sunlight in hot weather.

iv.   Wire nettings at windows and doors to keep out insects like house flies and mosquitoes.

In essence, housing quality can be judged from the physical appearance of the buildings, facilities provided, quality of wall used in the building construction, eminence of the roofing materials, condition of other structural components of the house, and the environmental condition of the house. Hence, the inadequacy of housing in terms of quality and quantity results in poor standard of the environment.

Mandelker and Montgomery (1973) described housing as a product and a process. As a product, housing refers to the end product of the construction work in terms of the structure, design, space, lighting, heating, sanitary facilities, as well as other conveniences. On the other hand, as a process, housing involves the construction, neighborhood planning, urban and regional planning, as well as environmental management. It also includes construction, rehabilitation, maintenance and re-modeling. Consequently, the housing stock of a nation is affected by all these factors. Agbola (1998) pointed out that the process of housing delivery involves the production of new housing, renovation of existing units and the dispersal of both new and existing housing to those people that demand for it. Housing problem is peculiar to both rich and poor nations as well as developed and developing countries. Certain problems are associated with housing worldwide. They include shortage of housing (qualitatively and quantitatively), homelessness, government shortsightedness about the needs of the people, access to building land, house cost in relation to specification and space standard, as well as high interest rate of home loans. The reasons for shortage of housing in Nigeria include poverty, high rate of urbanization, high cost of building materials, as well as rudimentary technology of building. Kabir (2004) posited that although the federal and some state government intervened by providing mass housing, only the rich and the privileged can afford it. He submitted that the intervention of government includes the formation of federal housing authority, the establishment of the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria, as well as the creation of the Ministry of Housing, Urban Development and Environment. Nevertheless, he opined that in spite of government’s effort to tackle the housing problems, the Nigerian housing situation is still in crisis, and sustainable housing delivery has been seriously hampered. In order to achieve sustainable housing delivery in Nigeria, numerous housing strategies, programmes and policies have emerged from colonial era to date. However, the United Nations declaration of ‘Housing for all by the year 2000’ geared up the formulation of the renowned Nigerian Housing Policy. In essence, the declaration suggested that housing problem could be solved within the given time frame. Thus, in 1991, the National Housing Policy was promulgated in order to propose possible solutions to housing problems in Nigeria. At the inception, the basic goal of the policy was to provide affordable housing to accommodate Nigerian households in livable environment. Disgusting however, twenty-four years after the promulgation of the policy, and fourteen years after 2000, many Nigerians are still homeless while several others are living in indecent houses up to this time. On this note, this paper examines the housing problems in Nigeria, the appraisal and criticisms of the national housing policy, vis-à-vis the way forward. A policy is a statement on paper by the government or an establishment as regards the way and manner in which identified problems are to be solved (Sulyman, 2000). To this end, different sectors of the economy have policies that are used in tackling peculiar problems. Hence, the housing policy is a tool that is used in town planning for solving housing problems, and consequently for the achievement of sustainable housing. Town planning itself focuses on spatial arrangement of urban and rural land uses for the purpose of creating orderly, economical, functionally efficient and aesthetically pleasing physical environment for living, working, recreation and circulation (Obateru, 1984). In line with the town planning procedures, the housing policy recognized the fact that inadequate housing constitutes a major problem in Nigeria (see Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1992). Also, Wahab (1993) noted that the inadequacies are both qualitative principally in the rural areas and quantitative in the urban areas. He posited further that the consequences are the formation of poor quality of the environment, as well as depreciation in human health. A housing policy is derived from laws, regulations and administrative practices that can aid the production and delivery of housing. Furthermore, the fundamental principles of freedom, justice, equity, authority, and public interest were taken into consideration in the formulation of the 1991 housing policy. The policy is a measure aimed purposely at solving the housing problems in Nigeria. Like other policies it has its specific goals and how they can be achieved. In this regard, the main goal of the national housing policy is to make decent shelter available and affordable to all Nigerians. The policy addressed fundamental issues like land ownership, housing finance, housing construction and delivery. Above all, a housing policy requires a strategy for the enforcement of the purpose of the intended programmes of action.

1.2   Statement of the Problem

Housing problems abound in Nigeria both in rural areas and urban centres. The problem in the rural areas has to do with qualitative housing while the problem in the urban centre is quantitative in nature. Housing problems in the rural areas are connected with qualitative deficiencies like place, degree of goodness and the value of the house. Wahab (1993) declared that rural housing is incomplete because social services cannot be adequately linked with them. He submitted further that the social services required with housing include electricity, water supply, as well as transportation facilities. All these are deficient in rural housing. On the other hand, urban housing problems include homelessness slum dwelling, squatting and overcrowding. High rate of urbanization, ever-increasing population of urban dwellers in conjunction with the increasing social expectations of the people are all responsible for housing problems in Nigeria. Ibimilua and Ibimilua (2011) identified the problems of urbanization as inadequate housing, unplanned development, improper maintenance of existing structures, aging, absence of social infrastructure, waste management menace, crime, and health hazard. Additionally, the houses in the urban core areas are characterized by inadequate infrastructural facilities, poor ventilation, non-availability of in-built toilet and kitchen, as well as poor refuse disposal system. Other problems that are associated with urban housing are lack of effective planning, development of shanty towns, and availability of dilapidated houses. Generally, housing in Nigeria is bombarded with problems like poverty, discrimination against the use of indigenous materials, ineffective housing finance, inadequate financial instrument for mobilization of funds, high cost of building materials shortage of infrastructural facilities, as well as the bureaucracies in land acquisition, processing of certificate of occupancy (C of O), and approval of building plans. Other constraints to housing development, maintenance and delivery are lack of effective planning, ineffective government programmes and policies, uncontrolled private sector participation, weak institutional frameworks and poor research and development into housing. In addition to the earlier mentioned problems, Agbola (1998) submitted that housing is inextricably interrelated with broader issues of inflation, income policy, and perplexing range of difficult social and economic trends. All these challenges culminated in the ever-increasing demand that cannot be met by supply.

1.3       Objectives of the Study

The main objective of this study is to determine federal government policies on the Nigerian housing model. Specific objectives include;

i.    To evaluate the impact of federal government policies on the Nigeria housing model.

ii.    To determine the relationship between the federal government policies and the Nigerian Housing model.

iii.  To find out federal government policies on the Nigerian housing model.

1.4       Research Questions

i.   How does the federal government policies impact the Nigerian housing model?

ii.   Does the federal government policies and the Nigerian housing model have a correlation?

iii.   What are the federal government policies on the Nigerian housing model?

1.5       Research Hypotheses

Hypothesis I

H0: There is no significant impact of federal government policies on the Nigeria housing model.

Hi: There is a significant impact of federal government policies on the Nigeria housing model.

Hypothesis II

H0: There is no federal government policies on the Nigerian housing model.

Hi: There are federal government policies on the Nigeria housing model.

1.6       Significance of the Study

This study will be of immense benefit to other researchers who intend to know more on this study and can also be used by non-researchers to build more on their research work. This study contributes to knowledge and could serve as a guide for other study.

1.7       Scope of the Study

This study is on federal government policies on the Nigerian housing model.

1.8       Limitations of the study

The demanding schedule of respondents made it very difficult getting the respondents to participate in the survey. As a result, retrieving copies of questionnaire in timely fashion was very challenging. Also, the researcher is a student and therefore has limited time as well as resources in covering extensive literature available in conducting this research. Information provided by the researcher may not hold true for all but is restricted to the selected respondents used as a study in this research especially in the locality where this study is being conducted. Finally, the researcher is restricted only to the evidence provided by the participants in the research and therefore cannot determine the reliability and accuracy of the information provided. Other limitations include:

Financial constraint: Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire and interview).

Time constraint: The researcher will simultaneously engage in this study with other academic work. This consequently will cut down on the time devoted for the research work.

1.9       Definition of Terms

Federal government: The federal government of Nigeria is composed of three distinct branches: legislative, executive, and judicial, whose powers are vested by the Constitution of Nigeria in the National Assembly, the President, and the federal courts, including the Supreme Court, respectively.

Policy: A policy is a deliberate system of principles to guide decisions and achieve rational outcomes. A policy is a statement of intent, and is implemented as a procedure or protocol. Policies are generally adopted by a governance body within an organization.

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