Out of the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory, only 17 have provided land for the National Housing Project, the Federal Government has said.

This was disclosed when the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, met with the National Assembly Committee on Housing to present the housing implementation plan of the 2016 budget.

The Chairman of the ministry’s technical committee for the project, Mr. Sani Gidado, who presented details of the programme, was quoted in a statement on Sunday to have stated that the ministry allocated N35.6bn for the NHP, adding that extensive consultations had been carried out.

Gidado was in the minister’s team at the meeting with the National Assembly Committee on Housing.

He said the ministry was “technically ready for the implementation of the programme in the 36 states of the federation and the FCT in line with the Appropriation Act,” but was quick to add that only 17 states had provided land for the project.

He said the programme was set for implementation under the short-term strategies and informed the committee that 19 states had responded positively.

He gave the list of the states as Ogun, Jigawa, Kwara, Kogi, Sokoto, Zamfara, Ekiti, Kebbi, Adamawa, Abia, Ondo, Yobe, Akwa Ibom, Benue, Bauchi, Osun, Anambra, Oyo and Plateau,

Gidado, however, added that two states, Akwa Ibom and Benue, just made offers without specific allocation of land.

The type of houses to be built, according to him, are blocks of one-, two- and three-bedroomed flats; blocks of one-, two- and three-bedroomed houses; one-, two- and three-bedroomed semi-detached bungalows, as well as one- and three-bedroomed terrace bungalows.

He said, “We had to know what we need for what location,” stressing that it was unlike the former President Shehu Shagari’s housing programme where there was only one standard design all over the country.”