FCT minister Muhammad Bello has reaffirmed government’s readiness to support housing projects initiated by cooperative schemes.
Bello gave the assurance on Monday in Abuja when he performed the groundbreaking ceremony of the 404 unit Staff Housing Estate of the Abuja Metropolitan Management Council (AMMC) Cooperative Society.
The estate is located at the Wasa District of the FCT.
“With the FCTA’s staff strength of over 27,000, you will agree with me that so many of our compatriots within the staff structure of the FCT will desire to have their homes,” Bello said.
He commended the AMMC staff cooperative society for embarking on the project and pledged the support of the FCTA to ensure its completion.
The minister called on other cooperative societies to emulate the foresight of the AMMC cooperative society, saying that the initiative was in line with President Muhammadu Buhari’s agenda of providing housing to Nigerians to bridge the housing deficit.
Earlier, the President of the cooperative, Alhaji Muhammad Hamisu, had disclosed that the plot measuring 4.2 hectares was allocated in 2015.
Hamisu explained that the plot would contain 404 housing units made up of 224 one-bedroom flats, 112 two- bedroom flats and 68 three-bedroom terraces.
He also revealed that the cooperative society was collaborating with the Federal Mortgage Bank and Mutual Alliance Mortgage Bank as the major financiers of the project, while the Abuja Property Development Company is the project developer.
Hamisu said that the project, which is expected to cost N1.5 billion, is scheduled to be completed in 2023.
He thanked the FCT Minister for granting a waiver on the sum of N9.8 million being the fee for building plan approval.
He also revealed that the sum of N4.5 million was expended as compensation to the indigenous people whose land was affected by the construction. (NAN)
