The Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola has debunked claim of Nigeria having a house crisis.
Speaking during the weekly ministerial briefing organised by Presidential Communication Team at the Presidential Villa, Abuja on Thursday July 15, the Minister said he has consulted with the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and some international organisations, including the African Development Bank (AfDB), and they confirmed that the Nigerian housing deficit reports were not correct.
Calling for the claim should be disregarded, Fashola stated that is no housing crisis in Nigeria as a country with many empty houses could not be classified as such.
According to him, the pressure on housing in the country is due to rural-urban migration which creates a demand and and supply problem.
The Minister who stressed that the actual housing deficit in Nigeria could not be ascertained until another census was conducted in the country, stated that people leaving their houses in the rural areas to squat in the cities does not amount to housing deficit in the country.