Family Homes Funds affordable housing projects comprising of 3,820 homes have advanced to levels that are inspiring hope for the communities and would-be beneficiaries in Bauchi and Yobe states.
Recently, the Managing Director of Family Homes Funds, Femi Adewole and his team embarked on a 4-day trip to Kano, Bauchi and Yobe where the organization is currently executing 4,289 units of affordable housing projects for low-income earners.
The trip was a mission to survey and evaluate both completed and ongoing site projects in those states in order to deliver them to the intended beneficiaries on schedule.
In partnership with the host states and contractors, intense work has been ongoing at several sites that have also created hundreds of jobs for developers, engineers, artisans, suppliers, food vendors and other products and service providers tied to the construction sites.
In Bauchi, the team visited Jama’are, Azare, Misau, Dungal, Ningi and Dass sites where the projects are at very advanced stages. The sites visited in Yobe were Potiskum (site A and B), Damagum, Ngelzarma, Dikumari in Damaturu, Gashua road in Damaturu, and Gujiba road in Damaturu. These projects comprising of a total of 3,820 homes are expected to be completed by May 2021.
The sites in Yobe are also at advanced stages with some already completed, and others – according to the developers – will be ready in three weeks’ time.
Interactions with important project stakeholders including project contractors, managers and developers, builders and artisans working on the sites, state government officials and peoples of the communities especially gave off a genuine sense of appreciation of the ongoing projects and the solutions they offer.
At its imminent completion, these projects targeted at low-income earners will guarantee home ownership for thousands of Nigerians in these states who otherwise, had no hope of ever owning a home. With a perennial problem of housing shortage which mostly affect those in these groups, Family Homes Funds is now making a difference and positively affecting several communities in Nigeria.
As seen in other places where the organization has completed projects, these new ones in Yobe and Bauchi will be thriving communities where people live and establish small businesses to support themselves at the same time. According to some members of these communities, especially in Yobe, this means a lot for them as the struggle to rebuild their communities continue after years of violent attack from insurgents.
In recognition of the progress so far, the Secretary to the State Government of Yobe state, Baba Malam Wali expressed his satisfaction with Family Homes Funds which he described as the state’s biggest and most successful partner.
‘’We are happy that this partnership has worked well, and we also look forward to more. A lot of jobs have been created and a lot of local materials are also being used,’’ he said.
Equally, combining affordability and quality represents the ideal shared by the Fund and its partners, and this was evident across the sites in Bauchi and Yobe. A reoccurring remark during the interactions was ‘’the fact that we are building affordable housing does not mean that we must compromise on quality. There must be attention to details and the finishing must be top notch.’’
Having completed several estates in Nasarawa, Delta, Kaduna, Kano and Ogun, Family Homes Funds is set to add to that number with multiple projects ongoing in states like Bauchi, Yobe, Borno, Adamawa, Niger. Also implementing the Federal Government’s National Social Housing Programme (NSHP), the Fund will provide 300,000 houses across every state of Nigeria.
It is noteworthy that included in the mandate of Family Homes Funds – besides the provision of affordable housing for low-income earners – is job creation and the development and utilization of local content in construction. The impact of this in the local economy cannot be overemphasized, especially at a time like this.
