Lagos State is continuing the battle to reduce its over three million estimated housing deficit, with additional 774 new units added to the existing stock in Sangotedo area, near Ajah.
Nigeria’s commercial capital is arguably the most populated city in West Africa, with an estimated 20 million population, 60 percent of whom live in crowded spaces.
At the commissioning of the houses on Tuesday, Sanwo-Olu, the state governor, said his administration’s involvement in housing was targeted at meeting one of the basic needs of Lagosians.
According to Sanwo-Olu, humanity is well preserved and protected when a decent shelter is made available just as he described decent shelter as the base upon which other socio-economic activities can be built.
“In an urban setting like ours and given attendant challenges of uncontrolled immigration into the state, it behoves on us as your own government to intervene in this sector so as to give succour to as many people as possible.
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“In utilising the THEMES agenda as a policy compass for achieving the Greater Lagos dream, the provision of decent homes is placed under the Pillar of Making Lagos a 21st- century economy. This addresses our ultimate goal in housing development. We don’t only build houses; we create homes in liveable communities.”
The governor added that everyone can benefit from the state housing schemes, which is why the state government is deepening activities in the area of land allocation and speeding up the formalisation procedures for land acquisition.
“We are going ahead with the plans for full excision on all untitled lands. This is to ensure orderliness and sanity in this important sector with the aim of tackling the problem of land grabbing in Lagos State.
“The menace of land grabbing is a major turn off for both individuals and private sector real estate investors. In putting this plan into reality, all stakeholders will be carried along to enable us have a formal and documented delineation on communal land and family land. ”
Sanwo-Olu had also unveiled the newly constructed Elemoro Community Junior Secondary School, describing it as a project dear to his heart.
“It is a fulfilment of my promise to provide the Okeodo Elemoro Iwerekun community with a secondary school. I am greatly pleased because, with the commissioning of this school, many children in this locality will now have access to secondary education and the platform through which they can fulfil their dreams and ambitions for the future without having to travel kilometres to another community for secondary education,” he said.
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