By Hosea Parah
Estate surveyors and valuers have urged the Federal Government to improve access to land and expand infrastructure development to address Nigeria’s housing deficit, estimated at more than 21 million units.
They also called for increased investment in housing, particularly for low- and middle-income earners, while stressing the need for reliable national data to support property valuation, infrastructure planning and economic development.
The professionals made the calls on Thursday at the Estate Surveyors and Valuers Registration Board of Nigeria Valuers Assembly in Abuja, where they discussed the challenges facing the housing sector and the role of surveyors and valuers in national development.
The President of the Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers, Bature Muhammad, said the government should make land more accessible to enable Nigerians to build their own houses.
He said, “The issue of housing deficit in Nigeria has been what we a recurring decimal. Each year, 2 million, 20 million, 30 million. But what we, as professionals, think the government should do, one is to give more access to land to people, so that people can individually build their own.
“Government can equally enter into the issue of site and services scheme, where government opens up land, constructs roads and demarcates those plots, and gives it to people to construct. Another issue is for government to build more housing,” he added.
He commended the Federal Government’s Renewed Hope Housing Scheme, noting that the initiative had commenced the construction of housing units across several states. “And we’re happy that the current administration, through its Renew Hope housing scheme, has started that line of action, building 200, 300, 1,000 in so many states of the federation. So, if that will continue, that will go a long way in alleviating the housing deficit that we are currently facing in the country,” he said.
Muhammad identified government policies, economic conditions and inadequate data as some of the factors affecting the housing sector.
“The basic issue is government policies sometimes, and the economic factors of the country. Another issue is data. Data assemblage. And on that data assemblage, the institution in collaboration with our board, is working on how we will get very good data that can be used in every aspect of the country for valuation purposes. Most especially, even on the asset base, houses, and all other tangible issues that need to be valued,” he said.
He stressed the importance of developing a consolidated national database to support government planning and infrastructure development. “Currently, every professional body, all hands are on deck to see that through. It is high time for us in Nigeria to have consolidated data for everything that we need to do, which will equally assist the government in planning so many things. Even this infrastructure that we are doing, it needs data.”
Muhammad said, “The future is always very bright for the ordinary Nigerian. If you look at it now, in Abuja, so many areas, so many frontiers are being opened. We, the professionals, advise the government to make land available. To ease access to land for so many people to get. Access to land is cumbersome, and the government is doing its own best now.”
He added, “To see that there is still land and people get access to land. Because when more people get access to land, they can go and build rather than waiting for the government. So, while the people are having access to land, the government should continue to build medium- and low-income housing.”
Similarly, the Acting Chairman of the Board of the Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers, Aminu Waziri, called for massive infrastructure development, particularly in satellite communities surrounding major cities.
Waziri said the country’s housing deficit and the failure to properly value assets had significant economic implications.
“When you look at the housing deficit alone, that is over 21 million or thereabouts, and other components of it, but when you look at the total of the loss in terms of non-application of the proper asset valuation in our national economy, the sum is really much, but it runs up to about 30 trillion,” he said.
He explained that improved infrastructure would encourage public and private developers to invest in housing construction. “To reduce the deficit, there has to be massive infrastructural development, especially within the satellite areas of our major cities, because that’s where most of this impact is felt,” Waziri said.
“When you have a lot of infrastructural development, both public and private housing developers will come in to provide the necessary housing infrastructure, and this will help us greatly in bridging the housing deficit,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Chair of the Education Committee of the Estate Surveyors Registration Board of Nigeria and Board Member of the International Valuation Standards Council, Uche Egwuatu, called for improved training and capacity building among estate surveyors and valuers to align their professional practices with global standards.
Egwuatu said the global nature of the profession required Nigerian practitioners to expand their knowledge and participate in international valuation developments. “The key thing is talking about the frontiers of Estate Surveyors and Valuers. The world is a global village and that doesn’t exclude Estate Surveying and Valuation practice. And as Estate Surveyors and Valuers, we need to enlarge our scope in terms of our training, capacity building and being part of what is happening globally,” she said.
She said the Estate Surveyors Registration Board of Nigeria was providing opportunities for practitioners to participate in global valuation standard-setting processes.
“And the ESVARBON is actually doing that and doing it well, providing such opportunity for the members. The body is a council that sets valuation standards globally, and ESVARBON is a strong member of that council which helps to keep it up to speed with what happens,” she said.
She noted that the adoption of international standards into Nigeria’s Green Book ensured that local valuation practices complied with international best practices.
“And that complies with the International Best Practice Standards, so it’s something very good and what is now required is for the valuers, individual valuers, to show interest, get properly trained, like taking part in this kind of event, valuers assembly, gathering to negotiate, to discuss issues that concern the valuers,” she said.
Egwuatu also disclosed that the board was working to improve valuation education in tertiary institutions to ensure that graduates were equipped with relevant industry knowledge.
“The board has started trying to unbundle the valuation education because the board also regulates estate management education in the academic institutions through its accreditation visitations to be sure that what is being taught in the academic institutions complies with or reflects what is happening in the industry. It doesn’t make sense if future valuers are trained and are not current on issues that will help to solve valuation problems in society. So those are the areas I think we are going, which is also very good,” she added.