The Nation Newspaper

Category: Building & Properties

  • Obaseki’s agenda for the common good

    Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki in Benin recently set the tone for the next four years by declaring that the state can no lonegr afford a government that is unable to create value across board. Assuring the people that he would be a listening governor, who discharges his responsibilities firmly and professionally, no sooner than he assumed the reins of government that he set the machinery in motion to propel his vision. He appointed Osarodion Ogie as Secretary to the State Government, Taiwo Akerele as Chief of Staff and John Mayaki as Chief Press Secretary. Ogie, a chip of the old block has been part of the immediate past Oshiomhole era, first as Chief of Staff and later Commissioner for Works. Akerele was Co-ordinator of EDO SEEFOR while Mayaki was Executive Director, Media under Oshiomhole.

    Before the announcement, Obaseki met with the state Head of Service and Permanent Secretaries and asked them to take full charge of the affairs of their ministries, pending the appointment of commissioners. He solicited for maximum cooperation from the civil service to enable him discharge his mandate effectively even as he expressed confidence in the civil service. He pledged that his administration would build a stronger, vibrant, trusted, competent and reliable workforce to meet the challenges ahead.

    That the new governor would rely heavily on the state public service to oil the wheel of his administration became evident when he announced plans to re-evaluate the recruitment process into the service to ensure that merit and objectivity were not compromised. He promised to study the report of his transition committee alongside that submitted by the permanent secretaries, before setting up a policy group to outline specific programmes for the administration.

    “I have no doubt about the capacity of the civil service, but we will also need to clear the clog on the wheel of progress”, he said.

    In another forum, Governor Obaseki reaffirmed that job creation for the teeming population of youths is a task he must carry out.  On this he said: “First, we must recover our society. We are likely to lose our society if we do not begin to emphasise those key issues of human development and economic empowerment. We have too many young men and women – in our own estimates – between half a million to three-quarter of a million, between the ages of 15 to 30, who have nothing doing.”

    The solution, according to him, is to begin the task of immediately creating jobs: “We promised a minimum of 200,000 jobs and to do that, we first have to understand our direction and the challenges we face in terms of unemployment…We went to Benin Technical College which was established 40 years ago to champion technical and vocational training for young men and women. The challenges are enormous because what we saw was pitiable and even though we have an obvious task, we are not daunted at all”.

    On his immediate plan, he said, “We will, using this institution to quickly understand what we need to do and the investments we need to make. To create the platform, put a lot of our young people through training so that they can be employed in the businesses that we are attracting to this state.”  The new thrust aside focusing on technical and vocational education will also make broadband penetration a top priority in the state’s infrastructure development process.

    “We need to strengthen and expand the infrastructure that has been established so that we have a solid foundation on which to build the New Edo State of our passionate dream. By infrastructure I refer not only to the physical infrastructure, namely the roads, utilities and facilities, but infrastructure in its widest sense. We also need to build and sustain a robust human, intellectual, philosophical and even metaphysical infrastructure for without them it is virtually impossible to attain significant progress and derive the extraordinary value that we desire from our efforts so as to build the Great Edo State we all yearn for”.

    With dwindling revenue from oil exports and concomitant decline in revenue from the federation account, Obaseki says that, agriculture will continue to constitute a major focus in the state’s socio-economic programme because of its strategic importance in many areas, from rural development, economic development and job creation to critical revenue generation and job creation. This time, the emphasis is on agriculture and agribusiness value chain, entrepreneurship, investments in industries and technical and vocational skills.

    “Edo people” he entused “will generate wealth by keying into our value chain development of oil palm, cassava, cocoa, grains, rubber, fruits and vegetables. We will create over 150,000 jobs within the next four years under a farm ownership and management model built around our out-growers’ scheme. We will support the growth of over 20,000 micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) with the further creation of over 50,000 associated jobs in the nest four years through access to low interest financing”.

    On industrial development he says, “We will utilize the advantage which we have in generating electricity and our location as the heartbeat of the nation to attract industries to Edo State. This will come by helping local businesses particularly SMEs with the enabling environment to thrive”. He also promised that his government will establish a one-stop-shop to provide incentives and support to make it easier for the people to produce goods and services.

    The governor also promised to focus on improving the ease of doing business and provide credit enhancements for businesses operating within the state with special attention on the productive industries. This is in addition to consolidating the gains of the last eight years by continuing the infrastructure revolution and urban renewal initiatives.

    While not unmindful of the enormity of the challenges ahead, the governor nonetheless says that “The honour that this fortuitous coincidence bestows on me will always be a constant reminder of the enormity of the task which is to guide the pursuit of the good and well-being of the people of Edo State with relentless vigour, uncompromising commitment and diligence”.

     

    • Odalo, a journalist wrote from Benin City.
  • Community, cement firm bicker over pollution

    Community, cement firm bicker over pollution

    Except urgent steps are taken, the sleepy community of Maiganga in Gombe State may be up in arms against Maiganga Coal Mining Company Limited, and its parent firm, Ashaka Cement PLC (AshakaCem). The Community is accusing the firm of pollution.

    In a September 26 petition, signed by its Chairman, Gibar Sobtar, and sent to the Minister for the Environment, the community alleged that the firm’s mining activities have made life unbearable for the people.

    The situation, it claimed, was exacerbated by the failure of the government and the firm to fulfil their pledge to relocate the community and provide it with potable water.

    “Our collective outcry against the dangerous and increased hazard of coal mining in our community is not unknown to you, and to the wider world.  It has become imperative to lodge this further petition, as satisfactory steps are not being taken to mitigate the existential hazards we are confronted with.  An worse, we are alarmed by the seeming expansion of coal mining activities in our community, which has evidently aggravated the environmental degradation, pollution and other adverse consequences of the exploitation of coal resources in our community,” the petition read in part.

    According to Sobtar, on more than two occasions, inhabitants of the community, including men, women, youth and even children, have had to organise mass demonstrations, targeted at drawing attention to an alleged inhuman treatment the community has continued to suffer from the AshakaCem.

    He is sad that in spite of the several promises made by the mine operator, nothing has been done. For instance, he explained that in 2007, AshakaCem promised to relocate residents of the community to a safer area; construct an eight-kilometre road linking the village to the main road; build a good school and a skills acquisition centre for women and the youth.

    Regrettably, nine years after, he said, the company has continued to renege on her promises. So far, only 66 houses of the 300 houses envisaged have been built, with only one borehole and an already dilapidated two blocks of classrooms. Of the three boreholes, only one is functional.

    “It is a litany of broken promises. Even the houses they built for us are of very low quality.  In less than eight years of relocation, the houses have started collapsing.  The few standing ones have cracked walls and looks like anthills,” Sobtar noted in the petition, adding that the community is further enraged by the continued denial of the AshakaCem, which claims that her cement is of high quality, and that houses built by it does not collapse.

    Yet, more annoying to the Maiganga community is the confiscation, encroachment, or land grabbing by the firm without compensation. The petitioners maintained that their farmlands were taken over by the company and we were not well compensated. The failure, neglect or refusal to provide speedy and adequate compensation for the farmlands remain a critical failure of the firm.

    “This is largely the grievance that prompted the demonstration of July 2014.  This matter still remains unresolved. The increasingly shrinking farmland or the dispossession of our community of their valuable farmland has added to increasing unemployment, and pauperisation of our people.  Our people have been farming on the land for hundreds of years before the mining company discovered coal on our land.  We have been displaced as a consequence. The dispersal and dispossession of our people continues, even as mining activities continue to bulldoze its way relentlessly into the surrounding community.

    ‘’The Mining Company, a subsidiary of Ashaka Cement, promised to employ at least 80 per cent of their unskilled workforce from the community, but the company has reneged on that promise as well.  At present, to the best of our information, the company employs only five people from the community on permanent and pensionable basis.  This is double jeopardy. They take away our farmlands, and also deny our people employment in the mine,” he said.

    The community is further worried that the activities of mining is taking a toll on her environment. They explained that during mining activities, significant volumes of earth are displaced, and the resulting rock waste can be harmful to the environment. They contend that surface mines has removed acres of vegetation and altered topographic features of their community, such as hills and valleys, leaving soil exposed for erosion resulting from ecological disturbances to pollution of air, land and water, instability of soil and rock masses, and radiation hazards.

    Though the community is still oblivious of the health hazards that may be occasioned by oral mining have not been sufficiently explained to the community, nonetheless, the borehole built for the community, does not produce clean water. Sobtar noted that information by environmental experts has it that colour change in the community’s drinking water suggest that, LarfargeAfrica, the parent company of AshakaCem, has not caused its shaft to the prescribed level of thickness that would have prevented the coal belt methane from escaping into the water table.

    Within the European Union (EU), Sobtar said, such would never happen because the thickness of the shaft is one of the three basic conditions that must be met regarding coal mining.

    Closely connected to the water issue is where the coal mining confronts agriculture, the core of the community’s livelihood.  This is at two levels.  The first level is the drastic decline in yield which the community traces to the fine dust from the mine which settles on the land, inhibiting productivity generally, and pollution in particular.

    “Furthermore, mining in the area has not only changed the pattern of the land but has greatly contributed to degradation of the environment; the effect can be clearly seen in the loss of arable land for agriculture as well as change in the land cover feature such as vegetation and farm lands which are converted into   mining ponds,” the chairman explained.

    Sobtar said several engagements with the firm’s top management, including the managing director, had only yielded unfulfilled promises. This is why the community is seeking the intervention of the federal and state governments to, as a matter of urgency, intervene and save the people from a perceived “injustice by the management of Ashaka Cement Company.”

    The negligence of Lafarge in failing to caste its shaft to the prescribed level of thickness that would have prevented the coal belt methane from escaping into the water table, is anything but a disgraceful double standard, considering that the French firm would not do the same thing in the EU or North America.

    Maiganga residents further see the proposal by Lafarge to build a coal fired power plant as an “insensitive, irresponsible, corporate arrogance of adding salt to injury.”

    Sobtar explained that this corporate hypocrisy is even more poignant considering Lafarge’s home country, France, hosted the Global Conference on Climate Change last December .

    “The environmental degradation is a looming disaster. The fiendish type of ecological cancer that plagued the Niger Delta as a consequence of oil pollution has reared its demonic hydra head in the Northeast of Nigeria. The landmark accord signed following deliberations at COP 21 commits nearly every country to lowering plant-warming greenhouse gas emissions to help stave off the most drastic effects of climate change is being celebrated. France’s corporation, Lafarge, is in Nigeria violating those agreements,” the community said.

    Much as the Climate Change obligations makes marginal allowances for developing countries, it triggers a fundamental shift away from investment in coal, oil and gas as primary energy sources toward zero-carbon energy sources like wind, solar and nuclear power.

     

    We’ve settled them, say Lafarge, AshakaCem

    When contacted, Lafarge’s Head of Communication, Mr. Ademola Ojolowo, said the inhabitants of the areas involved are predominantly farmers, living in thatch houses. Their proximity to the proposed coal mine, he explained, necessitated their relocation to a place of choice (community and local government) away from the coal mine and while AshakaCem built and provided modern houses for them. He listed the concerned villages to include Maiganga, Jauro Kelvin (Lakatangarin) and Garkoyel. This was done before start-up of the quarry operations.

    Ojolowo said the exploration and land acquisition were carried out between 2006 and 2007; while the Gombe State Ministry of Land and Survey, Akko LGA and AshakaCem team conducted the house to house census of the affected communities and landed properties. The exact number of houses found in the original village as at the census period was built and distributed to the people of Maiganga.

    According to an email received from the management of AshakaCem, the Gombe State Ministry of Lands & Survey carried out the necessary assessment and recommended due  compensation to the farmland owners, based on the official rates, which was paid in full by AshakaCem to all identified and deserving land owners in addition to matching bonuses.

    A compensation analysis allegedly prepared by the Gombe State Ministry of land and Survey in July 2007, indicates that in Akko emirate zone (Kayelbaga and others) a total compensated farmlands was 283. In the same period, Pindiga emirate zone (Maiganga and others), 117 were compensated.

    So far, Ashakacem claims to have provided several social amenities, including three boreholes, women skill centre, built and equipped maternity clinic, electrification of the entire village, two blocks of two classrooms each to Maiganga village as part of its CSR. Other villages such as Lakwalak, Kalkulum, Kayelbaga, Piu and Tudunkuka, the cement firm claims, have also benefited in terms of block of classrooms, maternity clinic, road, electrification and boreholes.

    In terms of local employment, the community youths, AshakaCem insists, have benefited immensely by being gainfully employed in its mining operation. Of the 35 permanent staff employed by AshakaCem in Maiganga, local content accounts for 27; while of the 92 contract staff, 85 are local indigenes.

    In May, last year, AshakaCem and the local communities signed a five-year agreement. AshakaCem explained that the Federal Ministry of Mines and Solid Minerals had written and raised some observations on the documents, and was in the process of finalising the reviews.

    “Associating health challenges being faced by some individuals with our operation may not be correct in many contexts, unless proven scientifically. AshakaCem is committed to Zero Harm and the well-being of people within and around our operations. We have a moral duty to protect the people working for and around us by caring for the people and the environment,” the statement read, adding that in doing this, the firm ensures the efficiency of its processes for continued profitability and achievement of its set goals.

    The firm assured that it will continue to take proactive steps towards protecting and preserving the quality of its environment using global standards as a benchmark and staying committed to its Clean, Green, Zero Harm (CGHZ) objective and Sustainability Ambitions. It said key components of the firm’s environmental policy as an organisation include reclamation, back-filling and tree planting.

    “These are integral part of our operations which we carry out from time to time and without prompting,” the statement concluded.

  • ‘Govt has broken social housing contract’

    ‘Govt has broken social housing contract’

    The Managing Director, KnightStone Properties Limited, Mr. Adeniyi Adams, has accused the government of breaking its contract on social housing provision with the citizenry.

    He spoke at the firm’s media launch and ambassador unveiling in Lagos, last week.

    One area that this contract has been grossly broken is land. According to Adams, houses have become too expensive to provide because the  government has placed a huge premium on land.

    “Land should not be made a premium because it makes cost of housing higher; it is not meant for government to place a high premium on since it was freely given by God. Housing scheme is meant to be a social contract between the government and the people,” he explained.

    Adams noted that the 17 million housing deficit would not have been a headache for developers if the government did the right things. One of these is the provision of infrastructure that will make housing delivery easier.

    “It is not the delivery of housing that is a problem, but the infrastructure. If the government can take away the aspect of infrastructure from developers, then housing will come in easier.  The social contract has been broken and unless something is done, we will continue to live in slums. The statistics is that about one-quarter of Nigerians are living in inappropriate houses,” he explained.

    The Knightstone chief said his firm was intervening in the situation by not only building for the top echelon of the society, but also giving preference to building for people at the bottom of the pyramid, who are  affected by the housing shortage.

    One way the firm has done this is to build housing carcasses are selling same to interested parties to complete on their own. By so doing, he explained, houses become affordable to an individual because he is able to finish the building based on his financial strength.

    “We deliver carcasses, which makes cost lower and the owner can finish it up with consideration for his own taste and financial muscle. For instance, carcasses could cost as much as N4 million, while the finishing could cost N10 million. So, an individual can decide how much he wants to spend on finishing,” Adams explained, adding that his firm also provides people the opportunity of flexible payment on properties purchased.

    The Group Managing Director, HFP Engineering Limited, Mr. Dele Martins, noted that though the issue of affordable housing had remained on the front burners in the country,  its implementation was shrouded in extreme hypocrisy by the main stakeholders.

    Martins, represented by HFP’s Executive Director, Human Resources, Mr. Layi Omojola, regretted that while the country needs to build about 700,000 housing units yearly if there is to be an impact on the deficit, only a paltry 100,000  units are being built.

    He listed the factors mitigating against housing delivery to include the lack of provision by the government of the primary infrastructure required to support the development of affordable estates, including roads, access to water and electricity, unfavourable government policies, unavailability and difficulty of accessing affordable mortgages for the purchase of houses by individuals, unstable investment environment, difficulties and lack of transparency in acquiring affordable land for the development of affordable housing, and bureaucracy in obtaining title documents to acquired or transferred land.

    Others are exorbitant cost of consent and other fees on the transfer of Land; bureaucracy and difficulties in obtaining building and other regulatory approvals for the construction of affordable housing, and the high cost of building materials and over dependence on imported building materials.

    Others are the non-alignment of the interests of the various stakeholders particularly the developers, commercial and mortgage banks on the one hand and the intended beneficiaries of affordable housing on the other; absence of fiscal incentives by government to make affordable housing development attractive, and indiscipline and corruption in the implementation of affordable housing schemes.

    “If we are to succeed in our claimed quest for the provision of affordable housing to the citizens of Nigeria and in particular low income earners there is an urgent need for governments at all levels to approach the subject holistically, sincerely and a great deal of commitment,” Martins noted.

    He explained that the success in the provision of affordable housing depends on the seriousness and commitment of all stakeholders, especially the government in particular.

    According to Martins, the issue is not a subject on which policy can be formulated or schemes introduced and left to run by themselves in the hope that the desired result will be achieved.

    Rather, he cautions, it requires a hands on monitoring and tweaking approach along every step of the way. To achieve this, any defaulter, he maintained, must be punished.

    “The corrupt process whereby what starts as an affordable housing scheme metamorphoses into a land grabbing exercise for friends and cronies of government must stop,” he warned, adding that government does not need to build or provide funds to build, but to create an enabling environment and ensure that everybody plays by fair and transparent rules.’’

  • Firm powers $300m Imperial City project

    Firm powers $300m Imperial City project

    •Offers promo plots for N500 

    Property ownership in Lekki may after all not be an exclusive preserve of the  rich.

    With N500, many including the poor, can now own property in Lekki courtesy of ChannelDrill Resources, promoters of the $300 million Imperial City project.

    The firm’s Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Femi Akioye, said the “Imperial City Promo” is a “special Corporate Social Responsibility” initiative for the public.

    For seven weeks, the promoters will give out seven plots of 650 square metres worth N42 million each in the low density residential inner city area for seven people; N1 million for 19; N500,000 for 40; N100,000 for 135 and N50, 000 for 210 winners.

    “The would-be winners would simply purchase a N500 raffle draw ticket for the special draws which has been approved by the Lagos State Lottery Board. The draws will commence from November 17 and end on December 29. This promo is borne out of the vision to make the IIBC an all-inclusive project where those we refer to as the average Nigerian can aspire to and obtain a piece of the future. We want those on minimum wage, the working class men and women, your hard working social worker, the civil servant, the teacher and all other citizens who have been putting in their fair share into the commonwealth to be part of this future we talk about,’’ Akioye said.

    The project is being developed as a new community and will be known as Imperial International Business City (IIBC). It is touted as the first self-sustaining eco-friendly smart business city that will be built in Africa.

    It is bound on the West by Lekki Phase 1 and Lekki Beach Resort on the Eastern axis. Three roads- Freedom Road. Lekki Phase 1; Kunsenla Road, by Fourth Roundabout and Oba Saheed Elegushi Road, with another proposed road through Femi Okunnu by Jakande Estate.

    The city, being planned to be a smart city, is being driven on the basis of two factors that will define the future of modern cities in the world – Smart and Green.

    Akioye explained that the Lekki axis remains one of areas that will sustain Lagos. In this axis is the ancient Ikate-Elegushi Kingdom, which sits at the centre. It has been projected to generate over $50billion Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the next four years.

    The city will be divided into residential, mixed and commercial areas, with each designed to have low, medium and high density areas.

    To ensure that the area does not experience flooding like others on the Lekki peninsula, Akioye said there would be land reclamation of about two metres above sea level; a well-constructed drainage and functional sewage system and shoreline protection that will be built by a German-based contractor-Messrs BAUER Spezialtiefbau GmbH.

    These, Akioye argued, would make IIBC the first eco-friendly smart business city in Africa.

    Other infrastructure to be put in place by Channeldrill include a 250-metre entrance road. The road network will include walkway and bicycle way; waterway and lakes; underground drainage, sewage treatment, potable water and water treatment plant, independent gas fired electricity and cooking gas piped to every house, including fibre optics cable.

    Others are cloud enabled communication network and smart city/house infrastructure for willing subscribers; mini-marina and water park, Mini Gulf course; Perimeter fencing, First Smary shopping Mall in Africa; cloud enabled 24-hour spy eyed security connected to a central security center; private data centre and a world-class hospital and recovery resort within a dedicated health care zone.

    The project offers various sizes of plots. The minimum is 650 sqm. Other include: 800sqm, 1000sqm and 1200sqm, 2000sqm, 3000sqm & 5000sqm.

    Akioye said the initiative was a reflection of the vision of Oba Elegushi, Saheed Ademola Elegushi, a joint developer with Channedrill Resources Limited.

    “This vision by the Oba Elegushi is a clear demonstration of love for the masses. He believed that those who may never think that they can own a home in Lagos, not to talk of Lekki, now have ample opportunity to do so by participate in the promo. With N500 lottery ticket, they would be a proud owner of home or money,” the Group Managing Director, Winners Gold Bet, Mr. Banji Sulaiman, said.

    The project consultants and contractors are: Messrs Dredging International Limited, Belgium; Royal Haskoning DHV, Netherlands, marine engineer and reclamation consultants; Mott Macdonald, a United Kingdom-based Infrastructure engineering consultants and Gensler Associates, also a United Kingdom-based Master and Town Planner.

  • Gbagada hosts Building Mart

    Gbagada hosts Building Mart

    A builders’ mart, QMB, at the weekend unveiled its  office complex in Gbagada, Lagos.

    It will serve customers on the Lagos Mainland and environs.

    QMB is a one-stop shop that deals in the supply and sales of tiles, sanitary, whirlpool, kitchen appliances, lightings, doors and other building accessories.

    Its President, Mr. Ayobami Biobaku, said the outlet was opened for customers on the Mainland. He expressed satisfaction that the project had become a reality.

    Biobaku said the Mart was premised on the core values of integrity, discipline, team work and prosperity.

    A representative of Council for the Regulation of Engineering In Nigeria (COREN) Eng. Kunle Ogunbayo, commended the promoters for bringing quality and value to the building industry.

    A representative of the Nigeria Institute of Architects (NIA) Mrs. Ben. Eboh, praised the company for its contribution to the building industry.

    She attested to the quality of QMB products. “Most of the things in my house in Calabar were purchased from QMB,” she said.

    A customer, Mr. Omisore Abiodun, who claimed to have been patronising the company since its inception nine years ago, confirmed the durability and affordability of products from QMB and affirmed that it has been “tested, trusted and reliable.”

    At the firm’s manufacturing partners from Italy, Spain and China.

    “QMB, a family name, will launch our new slogan tagged… Quality Makes Life Better (QMB). QMB Builders’ Mart is a world-class brand that will outlive generations. Our mission is to provide high quality products at competitive prices and excellent customer services,” Biobaku added.

  • Senate panel to fast-track FHA’s restructuring

    Senate panel to fast-track FHA’s restructuring

    The Senate Committee on Housing has promised to work with relevant agencies to fast-track the restructuring and commercialisation of the Federal Housing Authority (FHA).

    Its Chairman, Senator Barnabas Gemade, made this known in Abuja when he led his colleagues on an oversight visit to the Authority’s headquarters.

    He said urgent legislative action was required to fast-track the reform and commercialisation of the FHA which had been on-going since 1992.

    He said the planned amendment would strengthen the Authority and return it to its pride of place as an effective national instrument for housing delivery.

    The lawmaker, who was accompanied by four of his colleagues, noted that the fortunes of the FHA has been adversely affected by somersaults in government’s policy. He said the removal of the FHA from government funding had stacked the odds against the agency and affected its ability to deliver on its mandate.

    To strengthen the FHA, Gemade promised that his committee would explore the possibility of its benefitting from the Central Bank’s N30 billion Real Estate Development Intervention Fund. To this end, he directed the Authority’s Managing Director, Prof. Mohammed Al-Amin, to furnish his committee with a list of all its completed and on-going housing projects, including partnership projects, loan portfolio, and nominal roll.

    During a visit to the FHA/ENL Paradise Hills Estate, Apo, Abuja, Gemade expressed satisfaction with the quality of work done on the houses.

    He said FHA demonstrated a high level of professional competence in delivering quality houses for medium and high income earners and urged it to brace up to build houses for millions of the nation’s low  income earners.

    Al-Amin said there was need to strengthen the Authority’s ability to deliver on its social housing mandate through special subventions and regular budgetary allocation.

    He appealed to the committee to hasten work on the amendment of the law establishing it. He said the FHA depended solely on public- private partnerships to deliver houses since the government funding for it stopped.

  • FHA, UN-HABITAT, others to partner on national housing

    FHA, UN-HABITAT, others to partner on national housing

    The Federal Housing Authority (FHA) is to work with other agencies on the development of a national housing profile for the country.

    Its Managing Director, Prof Mohammed Al-Amin, made this known during a visit to the UN-HABITAT Programme Office in Abuja, where he received by its Programme Officer, Mr. Kabir Yari.

    According to him, the initiative has become necessary because of the unreliability of the country’s housing statistics.

    Al-Amin noted that though an attempt was made to incorporate a housing census into the 2006 national headcount, the data obtained from the exercise was unreliable. That failure, he said, was due to the defective nature of the tool designed for it. For instance, enumerators were only trained on how to capture data on individuals and not housing units.

    He noted that the lack of reliable housing data had armstrung proper planning and called for concerted efforts to address the situation.

    The FHA chief, however, expressed doubt about the authenticity of the 17 million housing deficit figure being bandied in various quarters, saying such figure has not been proven. The FHA, he explained, is in touch with the National Population Commission (NPC), which he disclosed has indicated that it would embark on a proper housing count during the next population census. He, therefore, urged the UN-HABITAT to make its expertise available to ensure the success of the exercise.

    Al-Amin said the FHA was keen to participate in the implementation of the resolutions of the just concluded Habitat III- the United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Development held in Quito, Ecuador.

    Expressing regret that Nigeria had not been taking advantage of platforms opened to it by international organisations, he said FHA was poised to participate in the follow-up to Habitat III at the national, sub-regional and regional levels.

    He said FHA was also eager to work with the United Nations’ agency on critical housing issues, such as slum development and the rising housing deficit in the country to improve the quality of urban life.

    Yari noted that the UN-HABITAT had helped many nations to develop their housing policies but expressed regret that monitoring and implementation had been the bane of policies in Nigeria.

    He said a nation should, with available statistics to project into how many houses it would need for its populace in the short, medium and long term.

    He said his agency and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) had projected that the global population of urban dwellers would rise to three billion by 2050.

    In view of that projection, he said it was important for policy makers to be on guard to ensure the availability of adequate waste disposal facilities and sustainable use of resources. Yari noted that low income earners who formed the bulk of the housing need base got their housing mostly from the informal sector, adding that he was  characterised by acute lack of infrastructure.

    He said if nations could get it right with pro-poor housing, they would reach the majority of those who needed housing.

    Yari, who pointed out that the UN-HABITAT was not a funding agency, promised to provide technical assistance to the FHA in the execution of its programmes.

  • Brands most coveted by interior designers

    When home owners hire an interior designer, they’re not just seeking out someone with creative flair, or a professional who can take the headache out of a building project. Intimate knowledge of the best products – from picture frames to mattresses – is an important part of the package, too.

    “People definitely come to us for brand knowledge – we have the ability to pass on our favourites from years of experience,” says Staffan Tollgard, who straddles both worlds as an interior designer who also runs a furniture and lighting showroom.

    “Interior design is very much about passing on knowledge about what works and what doesn’t, and the older you get, the more experience you gain.” Here, Tollgard and other designers give us a glimpse into their address books, as well as revealing some of the brands that their clients repeatedly request.

     

    Beds and linen

    “I had a client who insisted that the beds were exactly the same spec as the Dorchester,” says Rupert Martineau of architecture and interior design firm SHH. German company Mühldorfer supplies the esteemed hotel’s pillows (sold via the Dorchester’s online shop), but Martineau even sourced the same Vispring mattress for his client, despite the fact that it was a special model made only for the hotel. Tollgard is also a big fan of Vispring, ever since he was invited to stay over at a client’s house and had “the best night’s sleep ever” on one of its mattresses. “You don’t always get feedback from clients after a project has finished, but I’ve had quite a few tell me how amazing their mattress is,” he says.

     

    TV tech

    Ever wondered where you can get one of those televisions that rise majestically from a cabinet at the foot of the bed? Fleur Liversidge of Studio Indigo has a recommendation. “Cornflake is our go-to supplier for motorised mechanisms for TVs,” she says. “No one is that keen to look at a black screen hanging on the wall, so most of our projects have a pop-up TV trunk. Alternatively there are mechanisms that allow the TV to hide underneath the bed, negating the need for cabinetry.”

     

    Furniture

    Designers’ furniture recommendations are as diverse as the projects they work on. At the cool and contemporary end of the spectrum, Tollgard loves Italian brand Flexform, especially its sofas. A personal favourite of Michael Phillips, from Phillips Tracey Architects, is Carl Hansen & Son, as well as British companies Benchmark and Pinch: all make beautifully crafted, modern timber furniture.

    At the top end, it’s bespoke all the way: Joe Burns of Oliver Burns uses decorative upholsterer Aiveen Daly to add wow-factor to dining chairs and headboards with intricate pleats, folds and embroidery.

    “Her work is really unusual and different, and she can work something simple like a chair into something amazing,” says Burns.

    Designer Brian Wade of Tim Flynn Architects loves Cox London’s furniture and lighting, made with a fine art sensibility. For a recent Knightsbridge project (total fixtures and fittings budget: £2 million), he installed a pair of Cox tables, with bronze legs in the shape of serpents.

     

    Antiques

    The decline in traditional antique shops continues, but your favourite high-street dealer may well have moved to Lorfords in the Cotswolds.

    Interior designers love multi-venued enterprise (it runs across two aircraft hangars in Babdown, near Tetbury) because of its one-stop-shop nature and high-quality stock.

    In London, interior designer Henriette von Stockhausen loves Guinevere, an antiques shop on the King’s Road.

    “I adore going there – it’s an Aladdin’s cave,” she says. “They very cleverly put room sets together, which helps when I take clients there, because they can image how things will work at home.”

    Von Stockhausen particularly covets the textiles, including antique bedspreads and lampshades made from vintage saris.

     

    Framing

    Designers are now expected to have an intimate yet global knowledge of the best dealers and fairs for sourcing artwork. When it comes to framing these important investment pieces, from classic black-and-white photography to a delicate watercolour, the experts turn to John Jones Framers. “Artwork determines the mood of a space, and choosing the right frame is very important,” says interior designer Maurizio Pellizzoni.  “John Jones helps you to choose the right frames for each style of interior and makes sure that each piece of art is framed properly and beautifully. It’s a boutique service from beginning to end.”

     

    • Culled from The Telegraph, UK

  • NIA charges govt on multi-level housing approach

    The  Nigerian Institute of Architects (NIA) has urged the Federal Government to look into several options to tackle 17million housing deficit of 17 million.

    During a visit to the Minister for Power, Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, described social housing as a model waiting for implementation.

    Its President, Tonye Braide, said the institute had developed concepts on mass housing, which proposed an executing template based on the mass production of the components required to build the houses rather than looking at the completed house.

    One of these is the social housing model. Another model looks at the provision of a property exchange mechanism,where housing is treated as an exchangeable commodity with mobility through the housing types and based on income expansion, family size and zoning typologies.

    According to Braide, this would create an architectural value chain in the production process and open access to an array of Small and Medium scale Enterprises funding at single-digit interest rates for component fabrication, which will also culminate in housing development.

    “Low cost housing will be executed along the mass production templates used in the manufacturing industry. Standardisation of components will be key and an operating logistics platform can be developed to distribute the components around a localised area network. This will result in architectural component fabrication plants in every local government area, producing everything needed to complete a basic house,” he explained.

    This, he explained, would ensure that indigenous small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs) get the basic raw materials from local components which are in abundance in local governments.

    “If each component fabrication cluster employs 100 persons, then about 75,000 new upstream jobs will be instantly created. The downstream sector will consist of the masons, carpenters and other artisans,” he said.

    The minister was quoted as saying “we must be at the forefront of resetting minds about the realities of home ownership. To achieve social housing, the money has to come from somewhere. Nigerians must accept that social housing has to be paid for,” adding that that no community had achieved 100 per cent home ownership, no matter how cheap or affordable.

  • 193 UN member-nations okay strategy for sustainable cities

    The development of cities and towns across the world has received a boost. A new framework expected to set the world on a course of sustainable urban development has been adopted at the Habitat III in Quito, Ecuador.

    The Minister of Works, Power and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, who led the country’s delegation to the conference, called for urgent action to sustain development of the growing urban population.

    Fashola, at the conference, explained that the President Muhammadu Buhari administration, has demonstrated renewed political will to install a functioning urban system through the pursuance of efficient, transparent and accountable governance, including progressive economic reforms that are directed at creating jobs, reducing poverty and promoting stability. These are essential elements to sustain growth and development.

    “The National Housing and Urban Development Policies have been reviewed, with the incorporation of new development strategies for dealing with the pertinent issues of housing finance, climate change, resettlement, participatory governance, and better land management and administration,” he said.

    It was a memorable gathering for participating countries as the 24-page document, which took four months to negotiate before it was finalised in September, was not altered in Quito. The new urban agenda is a non-binding but global framework, which last month was agreed to by all 193- Member states of the United Nations.

    The agenda stressed that tackling air pollution in cities is good both for peoples’ health and for the planet and through it, leaders have committed to increase their use of renewable energy, provide better and greener public transport, and sustainably manage their natural resources.

    Among the key provisions are a call for equal opportunities for all; an end to discrimination; cleaner cities; strengthening resilience and reducing carbon emissions; fully respecting the rights of migrants and refugees regardless of their status; improving connectivity and green initiatives, and promoting “safe accessible and green public spaces.”

    In signing the declaration, UN Member States are committing to action over the next 20 years, to improve all areas of urban life through the Quito Implementation Plan, in support of the outcomes of Habitat III and the New Urban Agenda.

    “We have analysed and discussed the challenges that our cities are facing and have agreed on a common roadmap for the 20 years to come,” Joan Clos, the Executive Director of the UN Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat), told the closing plenary of the conference, which has drawn around 36,000 people from 167 different countries to the lush equatorial capital of Quito for the past six days.

    He said that the action-oriented outcome document, known as the New Urban Agenda, enshrined now in the ‘Quito Declaration on Sustainable Cities and Human Settlements for All,’ should be seen as an extension of the 2030 for Sustainable Development, agreed by 193 Member States of the UN in September 2015.

    “The New Urban Agenda is an ambitious agenda which aims at paving the way towards making cities and human settlements more inclusive,” said Mr. Clos, who also served as the Secretary-General of the conference, adding that it would ensure “everyone can benefit from urbanisation, paying particular attention to those in those in vulnerable situations.”

    Above all, he said, it was a “commitment that we will all together take the responsibility of one another and the direction of the development of our common urbanizing world.”

    Clos reminded the world gathering of national leaders; mayors, civil society representatives; non-governmental organisations (NGOs), urban development experts, and other stakeholders that “we will have to act for these commitments.”