NIESV’s summit to focus on new building techniques

To address the nation’s increasing housing deficit, the Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and valuers (NIESV) plans to showcase alternative building techniques in its 6th national housing summit.

The summit, organized by its housing faculty is themed: “Alternative Building Techniques for Mass Housing Delivery”, and holds on Monday next week at NAF Centre, Abuja.

Chairman of the summit planning committee, Mr. Kehinde Abayomi, said the 2018 edition will see new innovation that is capable of producing up to 1,000 units of quality and affordable houses within a month from the foundation to finishes.

This, he said, will provide a clear step to reducing the housing deficit but it calls for government intervention, since housing is one of the necessities of life and one of the most important social factors.

With speakers like Brig-General Tunde Reis (Rtd), Mr. Oludare Bello and Mr. Roland Igbinoba as well as vice President Yemi Osibanjo and Minister of housing, Babatunde Fashola in attendance, the summit is geared towards educating Nigerians and all stakeholders on the discovery as well as deal with the process of financing mass housing.

Briefing journalists on behalf of Chief Chika Okafor, the chairman of NIESV Housing Faculty in Lagos, Abayomi lamented the lack of political will by successive governments to implement various policies aimed at addressing the housing deficits.

According to him, the main reason for Nigeria’ housing problems can be traced to lack of leadership vision and political will as well as a well structured institution to drive government policies and programmes.

Abayomi noted that Nigeria has a national housing policy on paper, however since 2012, one expects whoever is the minister of housing to go through the housing policy and get the relevant agencies to come out with action plans for the achievement of the sectoral goals as contained in the policy.

Also the Faculty Secretary, Tosin Kadiri said, the summit focus is on how developers can adopt the new techniques to bring down the cost of housing in the society.

He noted that the target of the summit is providing affordable housing for the low and medium income Nigerians, who desire to be homeowners.