The Nation Newspaper

Tag: social

  • Ernest Azudialu fades off social radar

    ON first encounter, Ernest Azudialu, comes across as a hard worker and a resilient entrepreneur. But while he loves his job and perhaps works harder than most other entrepreneurs, he also parties as hard as a rock star. Surprising, however, his face has been scarce on the social scene for quite a while. These days, trying to find him at a social event or celebrity gig is akin to looking for boiled eggs in a Sallah stew prepared by a rich Muslim woman.

    His sudden disappearance has led many to wonder what the multiple business award winner must be up to. The social scene could certainly do with the flamboyance and irreverence which made the fresh-faced founder of Obijackson West Africa once throw a party where things happened that could turn nuns to nursing mothers and make men of God forsake the good news.

    But those days seems to have passed away for the top dog at oil and gas giant, Nestoil, as he seems to have swapped parties and bashes with business proposals and boardroom activities. The owner of four private jets, including a Gulfstream four, and no fewer than 20 exotic cars even confessed that he spends a lot of time in the air these days. No wonder he has faded off the social radar.

  • National security and social protection

    SIR: The economic well-being or lack thereof of society has a clear and direct impact on the security of the society. Societal threats such as unemployment, mass poverty, unfair labour markets, etc., generally affect social cohesion negatively and tend to erode any form of identification with the state. The resulting disenchantment and distancing, often witnesses the “radicalisation” of its youth, and the birth and or strengthening of criminal organisations, narcotic cartels, jihadi-terrorists, and avenging militants, etc.

    Social protection programmes are commonly understood as initiatives that provide income or consumption transfers to the poor, protect the vulnerable against livelihood risks and enhance the social status of the marginalised, with the overall objective of reducing the economic and vulnerability of the poor, physically-challenged and marginalised groups in a given society.

    Social protection has however been more recently deployed as a tool and component of national security frameworks, with states ensuring the provision of safety nets for the poor and vulnerable, which in turn encourages them to be productive contributors to society, thus depriving terror groups and criminal organisations of an otherwise ready pool of talents and personnel.

    Hence, in appreciation of these realities and the emerging societal threats to national security, progressive governments around the world have generally adopted a multi-prong approach that combines conventional security and intelligence systems, with a healthy dose of social protection programmes.

    It is against this background, that a number of commentators have urged the Federal Government to begin to pay far greater attention to the harmonization and expansion of its social protection programmes in the country because contrary to the erroneous perception of ‘social protection’ as some fanciful western concept for prosperous nations, social protection is in fact an existential necessity for the security of any state in the 21st century.

    The security services, as effective and brave as they may be, cannot be locked in an endless cycle of conflicts and insurgencies across the federation; currently the Nigerian military is on active deployment in at least 15 states of the federation. To remedy the situation, the government must develop socio-economic and socio-political solutions to the myriad of security threats confronting Nigeria. Just as his eminence Cardinal Olubunmi Okojie stated in his widely circulated letter to President Buhari, “If there is no solution to Nigeria’s problem there may be endless war. You strike one town, you gain it, and you come again to regain it.”

    Social protection is thus no longer a luxury, but a critical economic and security need for all nations, both rich and poor. Nigeria needs to secure its future not by the force of arms alone, but by the deployment of efficient social protection programmes for its poor, it’s vulnerable and the physically-challenged.

     

    • UgochukwuAmasike,

    Lagos.

  • Shell spends $195.5m on social investment in Nigeria

    Shell spends $195.5m on social investment in Nigeria

    The Managing Director, Shell Group of Companies in Nigeria, Osagie Okunbor, yesterday said the group spent no less than $195.5 million on social investments in the country last year.

    Okunbor, who is also Shell Country Chair, disclosed this in an interactive session with reporters in Lagos.

    He said the amount made Nigeria the largest concentration of social investments spending in the Shell Group.

    He said that $145.1million of this amount was paid to the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) as required by law.

    “Another $50.4 million was expended on social investment projects by the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC) Limited operated by Joint Venture and Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCo).’’

    According to Okunbor, these spend-levels have not come about by accident.

    “Shell and its partners believe they can make a real difference in the lives of Nigeria, and we have targeted our investments at the community and enterprise development, education and health.

    “Of course, we cannot take the place of government but we are keen to play our part in the development of a country we’ve been part of for more than 50 years,’’ he said.

    The country chair said that the Shell Group would continue with its contributions to developing the country’s human and contracting capacities.

    He said that $900 million had also been spent on local contracting and procurement.

    According to Okunbor, ownership of key assets such as rigs, helicopters and marine vessels is a key focus of these efforts to support Nigerian community contractors?.

    He said that Shell Companies in Nigeria were also actively involved in the development and utilisation of natural gas, pioneering its production and delivery to domestic consumers and export markets.

    “Although, the SPDC JV’s market share of domestic gas has reduced through a series of divestment since 2010.

    “This has enabled Nigerian companies to play a more strategic role; Shell companies still remain a crucial part of the national gas energy mix.

  • ‘Ours is economic housing, not social’

    ‘Ours is economic housing, not social’

     Lagos State Government, faced with a deficit of 2.55 million housing units, is introducing a Rent-to-Own scheme to bridge the gap. In this interview with MUYIWA LUCAS, the Commissioner for Housing, Prince Gbolahan Lawal, speaks on the administration’s almost one year in office, the efforts and plans to tackle the deficit. 

    Almost one year in office, what would you say you have brought to the table in terms of housing for Lagosians?

    Government is a continuum. The first governor of the state, Brigadier-Genral Mobolaji Johnson, who started with policies, such as the tenancy laws, also built houses under various home ownership schemes. Alhaji Lateef Jakande’s administration set out to build 200,000 housing units. But, after four years, he was able to do his bit.

    Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu came in 1999 and did his own bit. So, in the beginning of democracy in 1999, Tinubu came up with various policies; he noted that the government alone could not bridge the housing deficit in the state. He introduced the middle and low income earners scheme and also for higher end earners. Babatunde Raji Fashola came up with the LagosHOMS – a policy whereby first-time home buyers will have their own homes; it is the first mortgage scheme to be introduced by any government. Now, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode’s administration has come up with the Rent-To-Own (RTO) and the Master Craftsmen policies. This is because we realised that the productivity of our people has to be enhanced. At the same time, we are looking at various homes; we are working with the private sector so that we can have a robust housing policy.

    The Rent-To-Own scheme is a novel idea. What does it entail?

    When this administration came on board, we were bombarded with a barrage of complaints by people, saying they could not afford the government’s housing scheme. So, we conducted a study; and from the report we gathered that there is a need to come up with a more- inclusive housing policy like the RTO. So, for a consenting home owner, you will deposit five percent of the cost, and the interest rate is six per cent, with 10 years’repayment period, after which the house becomes fully yours.The conditions that qualify a person for the scheme is that you must be a Lagos resident; be tax compliant; must have the ability to pay, that is be in the informal sector or in paid employment. If you have a source of income then you have the opportunity of owning a home in Lagos State. It is also part of the financial inclusion of the government. Its is a win-win situation.

    What happens to a person that loses his job, say six years after keying into the scheme?

    Yes, that is very germane. Security of job is very important. What we plan to do in this situation is to hedge the percent of job loss. The risk sharing part of the RTO is very important. As the government, mortgagor and mortgagee, we all have to bear risk. That is why insurance companies have to come in and guarantee payment for say six months in the event of a job loss. We believe that if we can hedge our risks, then it will be better. The government must be able to position itself to support of subsidise if there is any default in anyway like for three months. Housing is not a pair of shoes that you just go to the market to procure; it has to be well planned for the long term. There must be opportunities for people to have access to mortgage. The entire value chain is being looked into and its going to be very robust.

    Are you reviewing the conditions for getting LagosHOMS for the RTO scheme?

    The only issue there is tax compliant. The other is, we have considered our people in the diaspora. And for these category of people, we have opportunity for them to buy outrightly. It’s not possible for someone in the diaspora to do RTO. We have opened it up for them. We are in 32 sites, and by the end of this year, 2, 663 housing units will be ready for off take.

    You plan to create 50 housing units in each local government area. How do you intend to achieve this?

    That is the new policy of this government. We believe we must collaborate with the local governments as it is being done in other countries. The state government cannot boast of owning all the land; the space for housing development is going to be a major challenge.

    We cannot say we want to have 200 housing units in a place like the Lagos Island, for instance. Wse must find a way around it. With 50 units in LGs and our one – in 16 model that is coming, it means we just need like three blocks to development and won’t need so much land. Because of the problem of productivity of workforce, we want people to live near where they work; while we are working on other social infrastructure. With that, we will be able to have growth.

    What will be the segmentation of this houses, vis-à-vis pricing and location?

    There is a need for us to have new settlement, new towns and also economic activities across. If you want to reduce rural-urban migration, you must be able to stimulate economic activities in such rural areas and their environs. For instance, look at Epe; it is close to Lekki where we have the free trade zone, so people can conveniently live in Epe and live in Lekki, which is just about 10 minutes’ drive.

    Land is static, yet everybody wants to have a plot of land. Is it possible to have four people share a plot of land due to the shrinking land size in Lagos?

    The self-built models is everywhere now and it is a challenge. Lagos is just 3,750 square kilometres. Now we know we have to go vertical construction way in other to accommodate more houses and people. In our estates, we encourage four floors and as physical infrastructural facilities improves, we can move up to six floors. Our physical planning regime will change. When that time comes, the Physical Planning ministry will adjust the policy of government where it says you cannot go above four floors in certain areas. Rapid population is a major concern- the growth rate is 2.8 percent; but is housing growth rate commensurate with population growth rate? The answer is NO; so we have to find a way of making the hinterland liveable, making economic activities expand to those places so that it will help in reducing rural urban migration.

    It is believed that there is a 17 million housing deficit in the country. Lagos accounts for 2.55 million of this figure. What is your target?

    The World Bank told us there is over 16 million deficit in Nigeria. The last time we checked, 600, 000 people come into Lagos yearly. It is for the government to say can we do the 2.5 million houses in four years? Yes, but it is a challenge. Where is the space? Is it the same traditional way of construction? Are we going to go into technology whereby we will be manufacturing homes? Our job is to build affordable homes so we have to also look at the cost. As the government, I cannot come out and say my one bedroom unit of a house is N10 million. We have to look at the cost of a unit. But if you are looking at the high end homes, then no problem because if that is what you choose you should be ready to pay for the extras. But for the homes government wants to build which is to make it practical, we will have to continue to subsidise it – 25 per cent subsidy is already in those our LagosHOMS – being the cost of infrastructure and land already deducted. Our prices are competitive. But on the 2.5 million houses in five years, the idea is this: the deficit we have now is 1.6 million; but for us to close the gap to forestall more deficit, we must be able to say lets put the deficit at 2.5 million. But with the way we build, only the government funding with tax payers money, you and I know that it will be difficult because there are too many pressing needs for the state. Technology and private sector must come in to make this possible. We need primary and secondary mortgage banks to partner with us so that we can look and the mortgage and construction finance aspect of building.

    How do you regulate prices if private investors build for the people to buy?

    Well we have our own quantity surveyors and other experts. If government provides land, our experts are able to determine what the cost of building will be. So we can fix a price for the sale, and if a private developer cannot sell at that price then we are not in business. We already have primary mortgage banks that will take care of people in the formal sector. The primary mortgage banks will have to go for refinancing. We are already working with the Nigerian Mortgage Refinance Company (NMRC); we are looking at the MoU and others before we finalise.

    In all of these, how does this key into social housing? What is the policy thrust of your administration on social housing?

    In those climes where social housing are being implemented, like the USA, UK and other European countries, they have developed a template. Their financial institutions are robust. Once you are working, the mortgage banks there would fund your initial deposit of 10 per cent while another one will fund the remaining 90 per cent. But here, we are not there yet. So government must come up with a policy that would be very fool proof whereby the entire value chain of housing will be taken care of. We call ours “economic housing”, not social and it is just a matter of semantics. The social housing scheme in Europe started in 1948 after the second world war. In England, about 426, 000 units social houses were built using the various housing associations and government; but as at 2013, it has dropped to less than 30, 000.  This is because the cost of financing is huge and also the global financial crises. New York housing city authority that we try to benchmark our housing development policy with used to call it welfare housing. It is called Section 8 which provides that government pays or subsidise considerably vulnerable people in the society- like the war veterans, elderly people and those that have proof that they cannot afford to pay rent. This is less than 20, 000 in some parts in New York. So because of the global economic crises, it may not really encourage social housing. As a government we have to come up with sustainable policies.

  • Braithwaite: Legacy of social justice

    SIR: It was Robert Kennedy, the former United States Attorney General who once said: ‘Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centres of energy and daring, those ripples build a current which can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance’.

    This statement underscores the life and times of Tunji Braithwaite as a staunch advocate of human rights and social justice. He gained singular reputation in his own right as one of the finest leaders of the pro democracy movement in Nigeria. He electrified the country with his passionate speeches for democracy and social reforms. He was an outspoken defender of fiscal federalism, the poor and a champion of education, rule of law and other issues confronting the Nigerian state.

    His political and social construct recognise the evil forces and economic constraints surrounding the oligarchic political regime in Nigeria with a profound understanding of social change dynamics and outcomes and he also paid an exceptional attention to the quality of state institutions, the design of public policy, and the promotion of self-directed role of leaders and stewardship in nation – building efforts.

    Indeed, Braithwaite’s exit from the political landscape marked the beginning of the end of courage, character, vision and ideology. He belonged to the last generation of welfare and pro-people ideologist who participated in the struggle for national liberation through the demand human rights and he became a revolutionary force for the enthronement of civil rule in Nigeria. His political and legal activism was driven by great intellectual and ideological ferment and his words ring true today. His austere political leadership and intellectual notions of human rights continue to expand today and no doubt enrich the political conversation on the national question and the urgent need to tinker with the territorial dimensions of the contrived Nigeria state. He represents a socio – political movement that is unequalled in the Second Republic politics in Nigeria particularly in the area of political party formation, organisation and ideology devoid of ethnicity and religious colouration of that era.

    As we celebrate the exit of Nigeria’s finest social crusader and political reformist, it is painfully clear that ‘mosquitoes and rats’ are still looting the commonwealth with reckless abandon and the tragedy of the Nigerian situation is that majority of the elite are still engaged in misappropriation of public wealth squirreled away in offshore accounts which weigh down social investment and development. Nigerian elites have failed to transform their political kingdoms into ecstasy. The inescapable image, therefore, is a picture of a people deprived of their basic needs in conditions of extreme hardship as state mangers and leaders fail to or seem incapable of advancing policies and programmes that would alleviate the plight of the ordinary man which Braithwaite championed and campaigned for in the last 50 years of his political activism.

    Finally, as a national reformer and a social rights campaigner, he may have been disappointed that Nigeria’s political landscape is still infested with ‘mosquitoes and rats’, but he would certainly be inspired if in the nearest future we play by the rule of law, popular democracy and social justice. There is a silver lining but we must be vigilant as a people in need of progress and development. That is the greatest mark of respect we can pay to a political and civil rights movement icon. Tunji Braithwaite made a difference.

     

    • Samuel Akpobome Orovwuje,

    Lagos

  • Social workers get network

    A network of social workers, Social Enterprise Network Nigeria, SENN, has been floated in Lagos to support and promote social facilities and infrastructure.

    The Lagos-based organisation, according to its coordinator, Damilola Famakinwa, “would facilitate government recognition and support for social enterprises by creating an enabling environment that impact lives in the areas of education, environment and sanitation, social welfare sexual abuse among others.”

    Famakinwa said the network comprises 12 non-governmental organisations.

    “Members of our network develop and implement sustainable strategy to tackle key issues such as to promote and improve reading culture, reduce environmental degradations, equip unemployed youths with work place skills and experience, eradicate illiteracy and promote adult education among others.”

  • Social Medicine

    Sex and the risks

    There was a mix up  in the introductory portion of the first part of this article; the correct  sentence is“superfluity comes sooner by white hairs, but competency(sufficiency),lives longer”. The error is regretted. The take away message from that quotation taken from William Shakes speare’s comedy book ; Merchant of Venice as applied to sex,is that it can in deed be excessive and too much sex has its consequences. Added to that is the fact that though, young boys and men may not know it, too much sex by way of frequency, associated with ejaculationor not, can be harmful to human health.

    Complete  copulatory sex occurs through a cycle and several stages of the cycle have been studied to make the work of sex therapist much more scientific and less subjective . It is essentially a matter , of ask-give receive, or give-receive ask give , depending on how it started. Though it will not be very appropriate to discuss them  in any details here,it will be sufficient to say that at one time or the other during the sex cycle, nearly every major organ in the body is involved. Of particular importance are the heart, lungs, brain, kidneys, the penis, clitoris, vagina, the spine which contains the spinal cord . These structures and their repertoire of blood vessels and nerves are recruited into action during sex, Little wonder then that a young man who has diabetes mellitus and allows himself to take a few bottles of beer while partying with friends may be courting  very serious danger if  under the influence of Alcohol he goes further to engage in passionate physically demanding sex. He may go into coma from which there may be no recovery.

    The risk of dying while having sex, copulatory or non copulatory is increased for certain individuals and conditions  as hereunder:

    Age

    Erectile dysfunction or persistent inability to achieve and maintain penile  erection is a major problem now tormenting men ,the world over. More common after the age of 40, it is one reason many men are killing themselves with sex stimulants . Women are partly to blame for the amount of indecent exposure available for people of all ages to see. However, they (women ) argue that it is the ultimate responsibility of every man to know himself. Arguably,It is unreasonable for a man older than 50 to expect that his sex drive and performance will be the same as it was when he was 20 years old; libido and performance will wane with age, and while a wife of similar age may understand and wait patiently, a young lady with mountains of energy and sex drive will not . A  man will  resort to all sorts of ways and means to match a young and energetic wife . Many of these ways  are capable of leading  to untimely death

    Genetics

    As stated earlier, being a male of African descent is on it’sown  a risk factor for many diseases of the heart and it’s blood vessels. The black male is naturally endowed with sex organs which  on the average  are remarkably sizeable and efficient . Perhaps it is wise to remember that the maker designed the African males so no one has it all. And so from all over the world, there are more males of African descent dying from complications associated with sex performance enhancing drugs

    Alcoholics

    For the African male, the geometry or Anatomy of the heart is not exactly the same as what you find in  a White  man of the same age. The pace maker in the heart(SAN) is set to kick start the heart earlier and to make the heart beat faster, Beyond that, the male African is more predisposed to have abnormal pacemakers, or double conduction pathways (wolf Parkinson white syndrome), etc. Because  it requires expensive equipment to diagnose many conditions of the heart , many patients are not aware they are not as strong as they think. Alcohol increases heart rate , causes it’s blood vessels to relax and widen. It  stimulates the brain and then later depresses it. It maytherefore stimulate the man, and then while the spirit is willing, the flesh is too weak to respond . The man goes for more alcohol until he goes into coma, or the heart beats faster and faster, until it stops(from excessive stimulation)

    Men In Primary Seated  And Standing Occupations

    Men whose jobs require sitting down  orstanding for long periods of time as required by occupation, are liable to problems of the lower part of the spine. A common symptom being low back pain. As they grow older, the problems are likely to get worse even to the extent that the bones may shift from normal positions. Because the spine is like a beam, it requires one little snap as may occur during one memorable time of wonderful sex and death may occur or paralysis from waist down may pacify the man.

    Underlying Medical Conditions

    Diabetes Mellitus  and Hypertension

    Diabetes and hypertension occur frequently in the Nigerian African, mostly separately but sometimes together. Scientists and physicians think that the connection may lie somewhere between the small  blood vessels and the equally tiny nerves that keep them alive. What ever the case, it is safer for couples  to go slow and easy on sex if the man is obese, has diabetes, mellitus, hypertension, or both. Inability to achieve and maintain erection is very common among patients undergoing treatment for these conditions, including obesity. It is important to note that many  of the drugs used in the treatment of many conditions such as hypertension, and others like peptic ulcer which incidentally is most likely to  afflict  the man whose blood pressure is chronically high have a major side effect; they cause impotence, the man has difficulties getting an erection, or if he manages to have one ,it is not strong enough for him to achieve penetration or maintain it. Again, he needs an understanding wife to keep his marriage. If she complaints, it gets worse. He is forced to resort to drugs, that  willfurther give him stress and the  effect is to increase his blood sugar ,  increase his blood pressure ,death

    Obesity

    Whether it is Gyenoid or Truncal obesity, it is bound to affect the heart and the blood vessels, truncal obesity being much more dangerous. Sex on it’s own is a form of  exercise . Tolerance and exhaustion  after any exercise characterize obesity, particularly when BMI is above 35. Death during sex, worse after a meal and wine is not uncommon in obese men.

    Adult  onset Asthmatics

    Asthma,characterized by difficult,noisy and wheezy breathing is  a medical condition that is generally understood to be inherited. It is now believed that it could be acquired as a result of persistent exposure to various  allergens . Even early exposure to broad spectrum antibiotics is being increasingly recognized as a risk factor for developing asthma. Because of the similarities in morphology between muscles of the heart and the respiratory tree, adult onset asthma is particularly dangerous as it may actually be coming from a poorly treated or undiagnosed heart condition. An attack can occur any time, but not frequently during sex because the stress response to sex, has a protective effect, but not when the system is over stretched . It will not be out of place to suggest that affected individuals  should be smart enough to ensure they have a cup of inhaler or  nebulizer close by when necessary

    Sickle cell disease . Patients with sickle cell disease; the heterozygous AS or homozygous SS have issues with flow properties of blood(haemorheology). Particularly for those with SS, there is a possibility of throwing emboli, and developing stroke. This is not to say that they should avoid sex. There are many AS African males who have four to seven children or more and never suffered any  of the crises that take sickle cell patients to Hospital . Moderation is  simplythe watch ward.

    Drugs

    Sex steroids, morphine, and other pain killers have body building as well as performance enhancing properties, and hence, users are mainly athletes and footballers. What these drugs or preparations  also do and which unfortunately is usually untold is that they can kill at any time, mostly while the user is actively performing. Staying away from them is the best decision any young person can make

    Sex Toys/sex Games/experiments

    All you need to do is watch the DSTV cable program; “1000 ways to die” and the import of the message will hit you without pain. Sex toys ,games and experiments are designed to make men ,but particularly women express extremes of pleasure. The risk of dying from multiple organ failure as the body is pleasured  may be rare but very real.

    Multiple Partnerscommercial Sex Workers

    Commercial sex workers can be brothel based, where they do their business out in the open and  in certain locations, or non brothel based, where you have to be an ‘area piper’ or belong to know them from other women. What is common to them however is that, they are willing to do any thing anytime, any where and at whatever price. That price may be the death of the young man who wants something new ,strange or different from sex. Those who patronize commercial sex workers often complain that they no longer find  their wives  or partners of many years sexually appealing. Unfortunately the excitement and peaks of pleasure derivable from the uninhibited sex available from these people come with no emotion whatsoever . They take control of every thing including the  capacity of a client to negotiate himself out of danger. Sex in such circumstances clouds judgment and even the strongest of men may become willing to pay more to have extraordinary sex ,even when he knows he might die in the course of it.

    Same Sex  Partners

    For reasons not yet fully understood , individuals in same sex relationships have many issues to contend with . Partner fidelity, disclosure status and peculiar ideations feature prominently in the intuitive perceptions capable of flaring when such individuals are behind closed doors.

    Sex Fights

    Strangely, some individuals grow up with certain patterns of behavior considered  deviant or abnormal depending on the society. Some women become interested in sex or get  turned on only after a quarrel or a fight, with a partner, husband or wife. It might be alright  for young couples, but for older men, a sudden rise in blood pressure occasioned by a strong argument may  rupturethe blood vessels of the brain. Bleeding into the brain may go on silently for some time and then progress to a major blow out like a burst pipe later during sex, and commonly at some time in the night when help is difficult to find.

  • Time for social housing

    SIR: On July 31, 2014, the Federal Government, launched the first 10,000 mortgages for affordable homes scheme. The then coordinating minister for the economy and Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, stated that the mortgage scheme was inspired by President Goodluck Jonathan’s pledge on January 16, 2014 when he launched the Nigerian Mortgage Refinancing Company (NMRC) with a view to making mortgage accessible to Nigerians to enable them purchase and own their own homes.

    Nigerians were assured of being pre-qualified for 10,000 mortgages to be provided by lenders most of whom were present at the launch. The NMRC was set up as a re-financing vehicle to provide mortgage lending institutions with increased access to liquidity and long-term funds, since the ability of banks to deliver mortgage services is limited by the fact that 80 per cent of all banks’ deposits are for 30 days only. Housing has a longer gestation period than commercial loans can accommodate. The NMRC, in ensuring greater access to finance for tenure of up to 20 years, was to accelerate the growth of the mortgage market for all income levels. The 10,000 mortgages scheme has been derailed by inconsistency of government policies in Nigeria.

    In a country with over 80 percent of people within the poverty threshold, housing cannot be viewed as an economic good only. It is equally a social good. Housing is a right and several local and international covenants guarantee the right of people to social protection that will help to eliminate the worst manifestations of poverty. The right to housing is founded, deeply rooted and recognised under international laws.

    Recent plans by the federal authorities of President Muhammadu Buhari  to adopt sustainable housing programme, promote alternative energy in projects, stimulate jobs for the low income earners and partner state governments in the process of housing provision is laudable. With the new housing policy, the federal government plans to employ Lagos housing model (Laghoms) by constructing 40 blocks of housing in each state and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). Each state is expected to provide land of between 5-10 hectares for a start, with title documents, and access roads or in lieu of access roads, a commitment that they will build the access roads by the time the houses are completed.

    This exercise will lead to potential delivery of 12 flats per block and 480 flats per state, and 17,760 flats nationwide. Human beings, generally by their nature, exhibit multi-territoriality. This means that the beneficiaries are definitely going to be those with one or two houses before. The number of flats to be delivered is also negligible and will not affect the graph of housing demand versus provision in Nigeria. Also, the Shehu Shagari-era federal housing experience shows that some states may decide to donate disused and inaccessible land to make the scheme unpopular considering the adversarial relations between states and federal governments in some areas. Most states are finding it difficult now to cope with infrastructure provision, especially payment of salaries and pension. They may therefore, not be able to provide infrastructures in the estates.

    Government has no excuses for abdicating its duty of care for the downtrodden and the vulnerable in Nigeria. Oil subsidy can be eradicated and in its place should be social housing development and agricultural grants. It will go a long way if the governments can declare state of emergency in housing and provide minimum of 500,000 houses every year as social housing for the poor in our major cities.

     

    • Olufemi A. Oyedele,

    Osogbo, Osun State.

  • ‘Buhari’s social package not one-off scheme’

    ‘Buhari’s social package not one-off scheme’

    The social welfare intervention programme of the Muhammadu Buhari administration, for which N500 billion has been allocated in this year’s budget, is not a one-off scheme, the Vice President’s  spokesman, Laolu Akande, said yesterday.

    Akande, who is the Senior Special Assistant (SSA) on Media and Publicity in the Office of Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, spoke in an interview with reporters in Abuja.

    He said the scheme “is a combination of several well-thought out programmes emphasising direct connections with the extremely poor, and the needy, among other categories of the masses of this country’’.

    A breakdown of the welfare programme is contained in the 2016- 2017 and 2018 Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP) submitted to the Senate for consideration and approval.

    According to the document, the Federal Government will collaborate with state governments to institute well-structured social welfare intervention programmes such as: School feeding programme initiative, conditional cash transfer to the most vulnerable and post-National Youth Service Corps grant.

    Under special intervention including cash transfer, home grown school feeding programme and micro credit loans (SMEs, market women etc), which is also covered by the social intervention programme, the government provided the sum of N300 billion for 2016, N339.05 for 2017, and N338.93 for 2018.

    According to the spokesman, the plan of the Buhari presidency is comprehensive and has taken into consideration some of the factors that led to the failure of past poverty alleviation schemes.

    “One of the major differences here is that the social intervention programme such as the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) would be a direct transfer of N5000 monthly to the extremely poor among us.

    “And this is a safety net that several advanced nations had put in place a long time in their history, and most often at times of economic challenges.”

    The SSA said that the money would be paid directly to the people concerned on the condition of school enrolment and immunization.

    “This way, we are expanding school enrolment and also assuring physical well-being.

    “The home-grown school feeding programme will commence in public primary schools in 2016, providing adequate nutrition to school children, promoting local farming, boosting agriculture, and creating jobs and wealth locally.

    “We have experts working in the presidency, collaborating with experts from global bodies who together bring to bear international best practices working on how best to implement these programmes.”

    “I can tell you that no sooner than President Buhari resumed work, many of these experts have been meeting and planning on how best to implement these plans.

    “We are not talking here of something hurriedly put together or a programme where some consultants would take the huge chunk of the resources.”

    Akande also said that as part of the half a trillion Naira to be spent, there is in the budget proposals, a provision of no fewer than one million jobs in 2016, including 500,000 graduate-youths to be engaged as teachers.

    “There is another 500,000 non-graduate unemployed people who will be trained as artisans, making a total creation of about one million direct jobs.’’

    He added that the presidency was determined not to repeat the past failed efforts at alleviating poverty.

    “As the President disclosed during the budget speech, he has asked the vice president to coordinate the programmes and I can tell you that serious work is already apace,” Akande added.

    He reiterated that for the first time in Nigeria’s budget history, the Federal Government would be directly intervening in lifting people out of poverty through a series of measures already proposed totalling N500 billion, representing nearly nine per cent of the budget.

    “Through these measures and for the first time, the budget is paying attention to the problem of poverty in a proper and direct way,’’ he said.

    The spokesman added that another one million extremely poor and disabled Nigerians would also benefit from the first phase of the CCT Scheme proposed in the 2016 appropriation bill to enable them to live decently.

    “There will also be the provision of affordable, very low cost loans to market women and artisans to enable them enlarge and expand their trades,’’ he added.

  • NSITF urges harmonised social security policies

    The Federal Government has been urged to harmonise and coordinate the social security programmes in ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs).

    The General Manager and Head of Social Security, Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF), Mr. Ismail Agaka, who spoke in Abuja on the challenges of implementing social security initiatives, explained that though the Federal Ministry of Labour and Productivity is charged with regulating implementation of social security, it has not been empowered to carry out the function.

    According to him, Nigeria does not have a structured social security system, hence, the need to urgently address it.

    “What Nigeria has are various social security programmes that are simultaneously implemented in at least nine MDAs. Therefore, the lack of synergy is really affecting the implementation of these programmes. Nigeria does not have a national policy on social security,” he said.

    Agaka noted that the last attempt at having a national social security policy was the Gowon Committee report. The committee, he said, submitted a report but several years after, there is no white paper published to enable legislation on the recommendations of the committee report. He, therefore, said there is an urgent need for a national social policy.