PHOTO CAPTION: From left World Bank President, Jim Yong Kim with the Nigeria’s Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, at the ongoing Spring Meetings of the IMF/World Bank in Washington DC

Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, said she utilized the Spring Meetings of the World Bank/International Monetary Fund in Washington DC, to hold a series of strategic engagements with global development partners on the implementation of some critical projects in the Federal Government’s Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP).
A statement by her spokesman, Festus Akanbi said on Saturday that the meetings focused on housing, water, power and food security, all of which are enunciated in the plan unveiled in February by the Muhammadu Buhari administration.
The Minister met with representatives from International Finance Institutions at the Spring Meetings to take forwards discussions on Nigeria’s agenda to deliver affordable housing.
“Many of these projects are already well advanced and we have had a series of productive meetings in Washington with development partners to advance those projects and hopefully accelerate implementation so we can meet the ambitious but achievable goals we have set ourselves,” the statement quoted Adeosun as telling newsmen after the meeting.
Continuing, she stressed: “Delivering affordable housing is critical to the delivery of our reform agenda and is one of the key pillars for implementation we have been discussing in Washington this week.
“Nigeria has an estimated housing deficit of 17 million units, and with an estimated increase of 900,000 annually. Some of the reasons for this are clear.
“Interest rates are high for both developers and home buyers, and the tenure of debt remains too short. As a result, we have to find a way to accelerate the provision of affordable homes. That is why we have established the Family Homes Fund.
“We have requested N100bn in the 2017 budget and for the subsequent three years as part of the Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF), this is seed funding from the government, but this is not solely a public sector scheme, it will be a partnership with the private sector and we are looking to mobilise additional resources from domestic and external sources.
“The Fund will enable us to deliver discounted mortgages for home owners, while also enabling access to attractive funding mechanisms for developers. We are piloting in 6 states and the results of those pilots will guide long term programme implementation,” she added.