……commends UNICEF’s intervention.
CHIGOZIE AMADI
Lagos State government and Access Bank on Tuesday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the construction of 704 housing units at Odo-Nla, Ikorodu.
The project will be built on 9.98 hectares of land and comprises 44 blocks of two-bedroom apartments.
The signing and presentation were done at the Lagos House, Alausa, Ikeja.
The scheme tagged, Lagos State Access Bank Housing Scheme is to address the challenges of housing deficits in the state.
The State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu who signed and received the MOU, commended the management of the bank for partnering with the government in providing affordable homes for Lagosians.
The governor said there are 14 million housing deficits in Nigeria caused by a shortage of lands among other factors.
He added that bridging the gap in housing requires bold interventions, innovative solutions, and collaborative efforts.
Sanwo-Olu further said in addressing the issue, his administration embraced Public-Private Partnerships, PPP, to provide a platform for the private sector to partner with the government.
“In collaboration with Access Bank PLC, we are embarking on a transformative housing project that will deliver the first batch of 704 units of two-bedroom apartments at Odo-Nla in Ikorodu. This initiative is designed specifically for low-income Lagosians, offering affordable mortgage terms: a down payment of just 10 percent, a single-digit interest rate, and a repayment period of up to 20 years,” the governor said.
He noted that the construction of the housing units will take 24 months and when completed, will contribute to the socio-economic development of the area and the state in general.
The Commissioner, of the Ministry of Housing, Moruf Akinderu-Fatai said the journey into the partnership began towards the end of the first term of Sanwo-Olu’s administration.
He said that the partnership was the outcome of directives from the governor to the ministry to collaborate with Access Bank on the provision of affordable housing for low-income earners.
He further said several ministries were part of the negotiation with the bank, which he described as tough but expressed happiness that the project is about to commence.
The Commissioner commended the governor for his ‘vision to birth this wonderful first-of-its-kind affordable housing financing.’
The General Managing Director, Access Bank, Roosevelt Ogbonna said in 2008, the bank made attempts to partner with the federal government on the project but efforts proved abortive.
Roosevelt said the bank’s management later decided to partner with the Lagos State government because of its public-private partnership initiative.
“We want to change lives by what we are doing. We are not doing this project to make money but to contribute to making Lagos a centre of excellence,” he said.
