The federal government on Thursday disclosed its plans to build renewed hope cities across the federation,  adding that the cities would gulp 50 hectares of land from each state.

The Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Architect Ahmed Musa Dangiwa, disclosed the plan when the governor of Taraba,  Dr. Agbu Kefas,  paid him a courtesy call in Abuja, requesting all the state governors to provide 50 hectares of land for the project.

With this request, the cities upon completion would gulp 1,800 hectares of land across the country.

Dangiwa, who also stated that decent, quality, and affordable housing for all Nigerians is a major priority of the government,   said the ministry was working with the National Population Commission (NPC) to establish the actual housing deficit.

He said: “Our in-house estimates show that for us to meet the housing needs of Nigerians, we need to build about 550,000 new homes per annum over the next ten years. That is the massive size of our housing challenge. At the average cost of NBM, this will require about N4.4 trillion per annum.

“Records show that over the past decades, the Federal Agencies, and the Ministry of Housing combined produce less than 15,000 housing units per year. A key reason for this is, of course, the big elephant in the room: inadequate access to finance. While this is true, I also believe that we have not been innovative enough in finding solutions to meet the challenge in a bold and audacious manner.

“The good news is that we have a President who is a proven game-changer. He has demonstrated this in all of his policy announcements. So, as we acknowledge the challenge before us, we are not frightened by it. Rather, we see it as a golden opportunity to make a difference in the history of affordable housing in our country.

“Already, we have written letters to be sent to all the state governors seeking about 50 hectares of land for renewed hope cities. I’m sure that your excellency will be kind and gracious enough to honour our request.”

Earlier, the governor of Taraba state,  Dr. Agbu Kefas, had said he was at the ministry to pay a solidarity visit and pledged his support to the minister to move the ministry forward.

Kefas, however, sought collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Housing and Urban Development to take over the National Housing Programme Estate in the state for the benefit of the people of the state.