JONAS EZIEKE , Abuja
Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Urban Development and Regional Planning Hon.Awanji Inombek Abiante, has expressed concern over the conversion of residential areas to commercial and semi-ndustrial areas.
Abiante raised the concern when the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, Dr Shuaib Belgore appeared before the Committee to defend the 2024 budget performance and 2025 proposal of the Ministry on Thursday.
He said beyond the provision of housing there is need for proper town planning else it would lead to the creation of slums.
He said, “We also have raised concerns relative to the conversions of residential areas to commercial and even semi-industrial areas. They come with their challenges. We anticipate that before approvals are granted for such conversions, an impact assessment should be conducted.
“We are hoping and believing that even the new estates that have come up and the ones that are going to come up, we should have assessments done so that we don’t create several problems in attempting to solve a problem.
“You all are aware of the very obvious example in Abuja, the Threadmore estate. It was designed to solve the challenges of accommodation. And as we speak, you know, it has a yearly problem of flooding.
*So in advancing other estates, we anticipate that the impact of such estates should be comprehensively assessed before they are carried out.
Abiante noted that part of the challenge in this regard was an enabling act as it pertains to town planning.
And then we have commenced the process to repeal and re-enact the act, especially the ones that concern and relates to the profession of town planning.
“The bill has gone through its first reading. We hope to push it beyond that point and have engagement with the Nigerians to advance the course,” he said.
Abiante also expressed displeasure with the pace of work on the Renewed Hope Estate.
The Permanent Secretary said on the regulation of buildings, the Ministry was discussing the necessity of establishing a national housing regulatory authority which is supposed to ensure standardization.
He however decried a shortage of funds as the budget of the Ministry was slashed from N162 billion in 2024 to N83.7 billion in 2025.
“ We do feel that this budget is grossly inadequate. Our 2024 budget was halved. If actually, we look at it, from 162 to now 83 billion. Of this, of the 83 billion, you can see that the Urban and Regional Development Department is allocated N4.6 billion for different projects as itemized in this bigger document which is before you,” he said.
He said the Ministry wants to upgrade its slum upgrading and urban renewal programs across the 36 states.
He appealed for the support of the Committee to get more money to enable the Ministry meet up its responsibilities.
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