Business
Worried by the slow pace of development in real estate sector in Rivers State, some residents of Port Harcourt have called on the state government to inject funds in the development of low cost housing estates.
The residents have posited that Port Harcourt, which is a fast growing city in Nigeria where people come to settle for business, requires a corresponding attention on estate development.
According to Mr Collins Ordu, a member of the Nigerian Institute of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (NIESV) and also a consultant with Ben Oti and Company, the issue of housing has not adequately favoured the low income earners in Rivers State, adding that even when government tries to develop any estate, it still boils down to serving the need of the political class and high income earners.
Giving an instance of the on going Rainbow Town Estate, where many low income earners were dislodged, Mr Ordu stated that the Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement in the development of the Rainbow Estate has made the cost to go beyond the reach of low income earners, as the minimum cost of house there is between N35 million and N40 million.
He therefore urged the state government to inject funds to estate development that will guarantee housing provision for the low income group which forms the bulk of the active workforce and income earners and recoup such funds through salary deduction.
On his part, an Architect in the state public sector who preferred anonymity said that government has not really taken adequate step to address the housing needs of the low income group, stressing that these are the people in need of houses in the state.
He pointed out that the state of inactivity in housing development in Port Harcourt has made it possible for both engineers and building professionals in the state Ministry of Housing to be sitting idle without work.
According to him, “If the government can faithfully inject about N5 billion annually, about N5,000 housing units could be delivered and at least 200 persons per local government in the state can benefit in a year, and when sustained for five years, the problem would be solved.”