Vice President Yemi Osinbajo says the federal government’s N200 billion housing loans are ready for disbursement to about 1.5 million Nigerians.

The loans form part of President Muhammadu Buhari regime’s social housing scheme.

Mr Osinbajo’s media aide, Laolu Akande, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday in Abuja.

Mr Akande explained that the National Social Housing Programme (NSHP) had received a further boost under the Economic Sustainability Plan (ESP).

The vice president’s spokesman stated, “Following the finalisation of the agreement with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on the N200 billion facility, the drawdown, with a guarantee from the Ministry of Finance, is now commencing to fund the housing project.

“The fund, which would be released in tranches, is expected to cover the NSHP project execution cost of the houses that would be constructed under the social housing project.”

Under the social housing programme, the federal government said it would support 1.5 million Nigerians to acquire low-cost houses through a mortgage or rent-to-own option.

The scheme, expected to “generate 1.8 million jobs,” deliver houses to “about 1.5 million Nigerian families,” claimed Mr Akande.

He also said that the number of beneficiaries of the ESP’s Payroll Support, Artisan support track, Transport Track, and Free Business Names had risen to million with one million Nigerians benefitting from the Survival Fund scheme under the ESP.

Similarly, he disclosed that for the General MSME Grants, about 44,500 successful beneficiaries had received the one-off grant payment of N50,000 each.

Mr Akande further explained, “In the same vein, 202,494 businesses have so far benefitted under the ESP’s Survival Fund formalisation support track, which is aimed at registering 250,000 new businesses for free, with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC).

“The formalisation support scheme commenced on October 26, 2020, with the registration by aggregators – CAC registration agents – across the 36 states and the FCT.”

(NAN)