FHA, private developer begin 260-unit Rockville Garden Estate in Abuja

Faced with dwindling revenue due to government’s withdrawal of funding and growing housing demand, the Federal Housing Authority (FHA) has entered into a partnership with a private developer for construction of 260 housing units in Guzape District, Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The Rockville Garden Estate would epitomize a real smart community comprising 260 houses on the rocks, made up of detached duplexes, twin duplexes, terrace houses, two bedrooms and one bedroom luxury apartments.

Coming as a partnership between FHA and Bauhaus International Limited, the project is expected to be completed within 30 months. Federal Housing Authority Managing Director, Prof Mohammed Al-Amin said that the authority intends to achieve greater efficiency in housing delivery, encourage the use of modern technology and injection of private sector funding into the sector.

He noted that the project which was planned to add at least 1,500 housing units to the FCT housing stock, is sitting on part of the authority’s 100 hectares of land situated across two districts of Apo and Guzape acquired for housing development for the medium and high income groups.

According to him, the estate would provide a safe, comfortable, attractive and functional shelter utilising the ambient terrain and a functional neighbourhood.

Al-Amin observed that the FHA has developed not less than 15,000 housing units in the FCT since 1991, adding that the authority initiated the private, public partnership model of housing delivery after discovering that its capacity to deliver on her mandate was limited.

Also speaking, the Executive Chairman of Bauhaus International Limited, Victor Onukwugha said that housing all over the world has become a hydra-headed socio-economic problem that needs to be tackled frontally.

He explained that the Rockville Gardens Estate will deploy smart technology-sensors embedded in streets and homes, Wi-Fi broadcasts and other Information and communication technologies for lifestyle living and also provide serenity, and security for its residents.

Chairman, Senate Committee on Housing, Senator Barnabas Gemade pledged to review laws that Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria and FHA, to enable them meet the needs of affordable houses for Nigerians,told The Guardian at a ceremony of Rockville Gardens Estate, confirmed the development said: “This noble gesture is aimed at housing at least 260 families, by any standard no means feat especially through partnership considering economic, business environment and current acute shortage of fund”, he added.

Gemade argued that it is significant for National Assembly to partner and work towards exploring different interventions to bridge the gap at all level to build more than 10 million housing units in the country.