The Lagos government on Wednesday said it was adopting proactive measures towards providing quality mass housing to keep up with the state’s rising population.

Commissioner for housing Moruf Akinderu-Fatai said this at the fourth edition of the Builders’ Business Workshop organised by the Nigerian Institute of Building (NIOB) in Ikeja.

Mr Akinderu-Fatai said the daily influx of people to Lagos was widening the shelter gap hence ongoing efforts for constructing highrise buildings while not losing sight of quality.

He added that the state government introduced vertical construction while capturing safety, cost and quality.

Mr Akinderu-Fatai revealed efforts towards closing the shelter gap through its various housing schemes and partnerships. He said some Lagos residents were not interested in owning houses as such efforts were ongoing for housing schemes for rent only.

The commissioner said the rent laws were being examined to make it attractive for the private sector to inject funds into housing schemes and urged professionals to collaborate towards assisting government efforts while urging them to shun unhealthy competition.

The director-general of the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), Farouk Salim, called for the prosecution of building collapse offenders to ensure compliance with quality. Mr Salim lamented building collapses, with Nigeria topping the chart in Africa and Lagos accounting for 60 per cent of the collapse in the country.

He commended the leadership of the Nigerian Institute of Building (NIOB) Lagos chapter for organising the workshop to boost the capacity of the professionals. The SON boss advised the builders to use knowledge from the workshop to conduct a post-construction building survey for Lagos State towards taming building collapse.

“This workshop underscores the commitment of the Institute to address the challenges of building and construction deficits in Nigeria. The survey practices and procedures for building and post-construction services are essential aspects of the construction industry to ensure that buildings are constructed and maintained in line with international best practices, thereby promoting public safety and improving the lives and security of the citizens of Nigeria,” Mr Salim explained.

He added, “The post-construction stage of buildings and construction is critical in the life cycle of a building. Surveyors and other professionals are expected to inspect buildings to ensure that they meet all relevant regulations. This will provide the clients with a report detailing the results of the inspections and recommendations for future maintenance or repairs.” 

(NAN)