A real estate firm, Neighborhood Turn Key Project, on Tuesday, pledged 300,000 units of affordable housing across the 18 local government areas of Edo to cushion the effects of housing deficit in the state.
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the firm, Mrs Cecilia Atohengbe, disclosed this during the opening of a four-day Edo Shelter Conference in Benin.
Atohengbe said that the initiative was a pilot project in the state, adding that recent studies had shown that 28 million Nigerians were in dire need of shelters.
Atohengbe, who is also the convener of the conference, said participants would discuss housing problems, examine and proffer solutions to the average citizen.
“Governments, over the years, have come up with several projects to try and meet these housing needs of people living in shanties and slums.
“As a company, we have designed a solution to enable anyone who earns N40,000 to own a home in an environment with good roads, water, light and other amenities,” she said.
According to her, aspiring house owners do not necessarily need to be civil servants or own bank accounts.
“He/she moves into the house and starts paying. It will be a rent-and-own scheme,” she said.
Other estate and property developers, who spoke during a panel discussion at the event, identified land inaccessibility, stunted financial and mortgage system as part of the factors affecting housing delivery in Nigeria.
