The Connected Development (CODE) and BraveRock, a real estate firm have listed ways to tackle the estimated 1.7m housing deficit in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja
The CODE’s Chief Executive, Hamzat Lawal and BraveRock’s Managing Director, Usman Zambuk, gave the lists on Tuesday in Abuja at a joint media briefing.
Lawal said that Abuja alone requires 1.7 million additional housing units, almost 10 percent of Nigeria’s national shortfall, to accommodate its growing population.
To bridge this gap, he called for the creation of a National Housing Data Centre for reliable planning, inclusive land reforms, and incentives for productive land use.
He also called for affordable financing models such as rent-to-own schemes, micro-mortgages, and housing cooperatives.
He said that the ‘tackle the housing deficit’ campaign aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 11, seeks to provide safe, affordable housing for all Nigerians by 2030.
“This is not just an economic issue; it’s a human rights crisis. The Nigerian Constitution recognises shelter as a right, yet millions remain homeless, especially in our capital city,” Lawal said.
He noted that the broader picture is bleak as Nigeria is facing a housing deficit estimated between 17 and 28 million units, and while demand calls for 900,000 new homes each year, only 100,000 are being built, leaving cities like Abuja to contend with overcrowded slums and rising homelessness.
On his part, BraveRock’s Managing Director, Usman Zambuk, pledged to scale up operations across the country, including expanding further in Abuja and Lagos.
He commended the CODEs delegation for the initiative which was part of the organisation’s fifth anniversary.
He, however, warned that “Nigeria’s housing challenge is compounded by runaway construction costs, land inflation, and interest rates that can hit 35%—making affordability impossible for ordinary Nigerians.”
Zambuk also said that Abuja’s housing emergency is a multi-dimensional crisis, where economic hardship, urban sprawl, and social exclusion intersect.
He said, “The number of informal settlements is rising, and people are being pushed further to the margins.”
Both organisations urged the federal government to reinforce housing interventions like the Family Home Fund and National Housing Fund with stronger financial backing, while also pushing for a new culture of green, cost-effective building using local materials.