Rivers State: A lesson on housing

SIR: A visionary government can be a force for good. The best sustainable way to improve the lives of the people is through targeted social investment. Social investment means investing in people to improve their skills and capabilities. It also means to lift up communities by improving the quality of people’s lives through targeted public spending.

In Rivers State, Governor Siminalayi Fubara is building 20,000 housing units for low income workers. This is the most systematic and targeted public housing scheme in the history of Rivers State, since 1967. Is Governor Fubara taking a page from Singapore’s developmental playbook?  
 
At independence in 1959, only 9 per cent of Singapore’s population had public housing. Today, over 80 per cent of Singaporeans live in houses built by the government. In fact, Singapore has the best public housing scheme in the world today. Decades of visionary leadership and social investment helped move Singapore from a developing country to the ranks of advanced economies.

In Nigeria, it is widely believed that the 36 states have been punching below their weights for far too long. If Nigeria is to meet its development targets, then states must begin to think and develop almost like independent entities within the federation. 

Indeed, states in Nigeria must serve as centres of innovative leadership, good governance, and inclusive growth. This is why, in Rivers State, Fubara is right to insist that public resources must be used for the benefit of the people. Therefore, the Rivers State government has placed the present and future needs of the people squarely at the centre of public policy. When completed, below are four benefits that the Rivers State Government’s public housing scheme can create:

Fast social mobility: 
When completed, the 20,000 housing units will move low-income workers and their families from poor, informal settlements (ghettos) to an organised, sustainable community. This is government-assisted social mobility like we have never seen before in the state. As the example of Singapore shows, decent and affordable housing is one of the solid pillars upon which a people’s prosperity can be built. 

A leap out of poverty:
When affordable public housing is combined with the new minimum wage, and the ongoing rejuvenation of public schools and health services in Rivers State, the people’s lives will be improved. The people will be placed on a sustainable path out of poverty.

Social investment creates inclusive growth:
Development is about improving the people’s material conditions and the environment in which they live.  By investing in decent and affordable housing for thousands of low-income workers in Rivers State, Fubara is making government meaningful to the most vulnerable people in the state.

Furthermore, social investment such as public housing reduces social inequity and increases inclusive growth in a practical and direct way that people can actually feel and own.

Reduction in crime:
Finally, over the medium and long terms, Fubara’s public housing policy is expected to lead to a significant reduction in crime and criminality in Rivers State. 

As thousands of people move from unplanned and poorly-policed informal settlements to a more organised urban housing scheme, it will be easier for law enforcement agencies to provide protection for everyone.

Ultimately, the government recognises that a better quality of life for the people of Rivers State is the most effective hedge against crime.
In Rivers State, Fubara is smashing the golden calf of illicit politics.  He is turning the page on the prebendal and toxic politics of the past. And like a judicious midwife, he is returning government to the sovereign loins of the people.
• Dr Austin Tam-George is a former senior executive fellow at Harvard Kennedy School in Cambridge, Massachuset