To create befitting accommodation and affordable housing scheme to Nigerian workers in the FCT, Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) is collaborating with the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), Trade Union Congress(TUC) and GoodHomes Development Company Limited to deliver 9,650 quality and affordable housing to Nigerian workers in the FCT under the federal government’s Nationwide Workers’ Housing Scheme.
Minister of FCT, Senator Bala Mohammed, while signing the agreement with the parties yesterday at the project site in Apo Tafyi, Abuja, said the Scheme was borne out of President Goodluck Jonathan’s passion for the welfare of Nigerian workers as a total of 650 hectares of land is being allocated to the development of Nigerian workers housing scheme.
“The President, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan has called me and the Minister of State personally and given us marching order that the people who are the engine room of the economy should be provided with where they can put their heads. He said we should give 1, 000 houses to Abuja workers.”
In order to ensure the project is delivered, he said: “We are going to collaborate with you. We are going to leverage on finances from private sector, Sure-P and Internally Generated Revenue.”
He therefore, directed the Department of Development Control to ensure thorough engineering design for the project for quality infrastructure to be put in place.
“I want to assure you that this district will not be different from Maitama and Asokoro,” adding that “on our part, we will make sure we bring water and electricity to all the districts we are building for Nigerian workers. We are developing new districts. For the next 25 years.”
According to the minister, FCT administration has also made sure that the resettlement and compensation of the people of the district areas are settled before the developer started the work; adding that the impending demolition of the Nyanya Labour Camp is not to put workers in distress but to raise their status.
The beneficiaries of the scheme cut across public and private company sector workers, self employed and those contributing to the National Housing and Pension Funds.
Speaking earlier, the NLC President, Comrade Abdulwaheed Umar, said on assumption of office, his administration prioritised the issue of workers housing.
According to him, seeing the position of Nigerian workers based on the salary they earn, they are not able to own a house.
He appealed to the minister to prevail on the Federal Mortgage bank to ensure that this project is well funded so that it does not stop.
