The Kwara state government Wednesday challenged professionals and stakehokders in the building sector to evolve a new safety techniques to avert incessant building collapse in the country.
The governor, Mallam AbdulRahman AbdulRaq, gave the charge at a one day symposium organised by the Kwara state ministry of housing and urban development, themed: “Building control in Kwara State: A synergy between Kwara State Goverment and Stakehokders” .
Represented by the state commissoner for communications, Hon Olabode Towoju, the governor lamented that the issue of building collapse in the country “has reached an alarming crescendo. On several occasions, it led to unnecessary loss of lives and properties, thus becoming an issue of major concern since it poses threat to the nation’s development”.
AbdulRazaq said his government in it’s determination to ensure sanity in the building sector, has created the newly established ministry of housing and urban development.
The goverment through the ministry he added “is set to initiate the creation of a functioning building control agency that will inspect, approve and certify every stage of building construction in the state.
“This agency is expected to sanitise the building sector and encourage sustainable housing development in the state”.
While acknowledging that government alone cannot do it, the governor also asked professional bodies to regulate the activities of their members.
“Part of the key roles of the stakeholders in this move, particularly the professional bodies is to determine the standard of educational qualification of their members and regulate their activities in the building and construction industry”, he said.
In his address, the state commissioner for housing and urban development, Ibrahim Akaje, asked participationts at the workshop to “take advantage of the symposium to learn new ideas towards world class building techniques that will help in putting an end to building collapse in the country”.
Akaje said the essence of the symposium was to expose participants to new techniques and tap from experiences of professionals and stakehokders to develop the sector.
Speaker Kwara state House of assembly represented by his deputy Hon Felixe Awodiji assured that the government will get legislative support to drive it’s policies on sustainable housing projects.
