PROPERTY TRANSACTION GUIDE

Govt begins validation of revised national housing, urban development policies
By Nkechi Onyedika, Abuja

Guardian, 2nd January, 2012

THE Federal Government has started the validation of the revised National Housing Policy and the National Urban Development Policy for the country.

This is to incorporate present realities, establish relevant framework for housing delivery and urban development within the framework of the housing sector vision of National Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy (NEEDS) II, the Vision 2020 plan implementation and the Millennium Development Goals (Goal 7: targets 10 and 11).

Speaking at the stakeholders’ workshop recently in Abuja, Minister of Lands, Housing and Urban Development, Madam Amma Pepple noted that there has not been any approved national policies for ensuring coordinated actions at all levels in the housing sector since 2005.

She noted that the two draft policies adopted by the workshop, would now be tabled before the National Council on Housing and Urban Development and subsequently forwarded to the Federal Executive Council for approval early this year.

The minister said that there is need to guide government’s strategic interventions in the housing and urban development sector through appropriate frameworks to enable the sector contribute to national development.

Pepple observed that former ministers of housing and other stakeholders since 1992, had worked tirelessly to develop national policies on housing and urban development but added that their efforts did not lead to adoption of these policies by government.