The Federal Government has been advised to commence the imposition of levies on vacant houses in the country, noting that such would address housing challenges. Ms Leilana Fartha, UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights to Adequate Housing, made the suggestion on Monday, 23rd September 2019 at a news conference in Abuja.
According to the envoy, the informal settlements house about 69 per cent of the urban population.
In her words “Most residents in Nigeria’s ballooning informal settlements live without access to even the most basic services, like running water.
“And they lack any security of tenure, forcing them to live in constant fear of being evicted.
“My 10 days fact findings visit to Nigeria has presented an economic inequality in the country, which has reached an extreme level and is playing itself out clearly in the housing sector.
She revealed that there is an estimated housing shortage of 22 million units.
“At the same time, newly built luxury dwellings are springing up throughout cities and made possible often through the forced eviction of poor communities.
“These units do not fulfil any housing need, with many remaining vacant as vehicles for money laundering or investment,’’ she said.
Fartha urged the Federal Government to take urgent measures to address homelessness and poverty.
She further opined that a nation-wide moratorium on forced evictions is issued.
“Government must address the grossly inadequate housing conditions with the urgency and rigour befitting a human rights crisis of this scale.
It was disclosed that a detailed report of the visit would be submitted to the UN Human Rights Council in March 2020.
