Posted: 2022 | Pages: 95 | Format: MS Word | Chapters: 1-5 | Others: Questionnaires & References

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ABSTRACT

Shelter currently ranks internationally as man’s number one basic need after food. Nigeria currently grapples with inadequate housing stock particularly for its low and middle – income earners as the demand for housing keeps growing in the face if rapid housing deficit. The study’s objectives are to identify the housing related problems faced by low-income earners in Enugu urban, ascertain the impact of housing problems for low-income earners, identify the effects of existing housing policies and programs on low-income housing in the study area, identify the nature of the relationship between low- and high-income accommodations in Enugu and to proffer necessary recommendation aimed at improving the present situation. The survey research design was adopted. Taro Yamane was used in arriving at the sample size. The primary and secondary sources of data collection was adopted. The Estate Surveyors and Valuers and staff of Ministry of Works and Infrastructure formed the population of the study. Out of 118 questionnaires administered only 109 were collected. The study recommended the following; that Federal Government’s recognition of housing for the poor as a national problem be handled at Local Government level, that Local Government act as catalyst for government housing delivery needs, that the urban local government be empowered to conduct a housing survey within their jurisdiction to determine the housing needs and that government should provide sites and scheme in urban town for all categories of income group.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Housing provision is one of the major problems facing Nigeria today. It is becoming increasingly difficult for low-income earners to own housing of their own or to procure a decent accommodation at a reasonable rent. It is a known fact that shelter is an indispensable basic need of man.

Provision of shelter is therefore a basic problem in Nigeria. Shelter is important to the development of the society in economic, social and political terms. One major problem associated with rapid urbanization in Nigeria is acute shortage of housing particularly for low-income earners. The supply is unable to cope with demand and the problem is further aggravated by the fact that the bulk of existing houses are mainly in deteriorating condition due to wear and tear, age, non-functionality of the building, poor planning, poor building materials and absence of basic amenities which are essential for basic human survival such as hospitals, recreational facilities, good sewage system, pipe borne water etc. The result of these are the over-crowding and congestion in many of the cities particularly the capitals where occupancy ratio is now mostly between 5-8 people per room. There is a high rent, which is often beyond the means of low-income earners.

The housing problems are as a matter of crucial concern in most developing countries. Therefore, there is need to ensure adequate supply (qualitatively and quantitatively) of housing to match an ever-growing demand so as to produce rents which are reasonable to meet the demand of low-income earning group in Enugu Urban area and which are equitable in terms of returns to the investors in housing sector.

The housing of the low-income group has become a difficult issue to tackle. This can be attributed to the high demand of poor-quality types of accommodation by low-income earners. This is because property owners tend to modernize and construct attractive building so as to attract highest rent possible.

The poor therefore finds it difficult to pay these exorbitant rents. Therefore, it is a problem that should be researched and solution sought.  It has long been realised that the quality of human life is greatly dependent on the quality of housing and its environment especially in the urban centres. Since the colonial Nigeria, the problem of providing shelter for low-income groups was never tackled with seriousness especially in the southeast.

The colonial masters succeeded in making life comfortable for themselves by seriously tackling the housing problem in their own interest. The result was the development of estates known as “Government Reservation Area (GRA)” in all urban areas. In order to assuage the feelings of the teeming working class, they developed small estates in the heart of every urban town where small quarters are allocated to a few low-income earners.

It is true that since independence, some governments had made efforts to provide low-income houses for its workers. An example was the Africa Real Estate in Enugu, which wore the garb of a private enterprise but was taken over by succeeding government after Nigeria had gone through the trauma of civil war. There was also the former Eastern Nigeria Housing Corporation established in 1965, which succeeded in developing Estates in Enugu and Port Harcourt before the civil war in 1967. All these efforts were not enough to tackle the problem of low-income housing.

Provision of housing is still below average; the worst hit of these housing shortages are the low-income earners especially in Enugu.

Except quarters erected by Railway Corporation and Coal Corporation in 1960s no other meaningful housing has been provided for low-income earners in Enugu metropolis. Several governments have come and gone without providing for low-income earners. The Ebeano Housing Estate and Golf Estate, which were provided by the administration of Dr. Chimaroke Nnamani were not for the low income earners. The present government of Bar. Sullivan Chime is yet to see any need for housing the low-income earners, the Coal City Gardens Estate at GRA, developed by the present administration is also not for the low-income earners in the State. Where majority of her staff that work in the various ministries and parastatals live outside the core areas of the ministry. Therefore, the provision of housing for low-income group calls for a critical appraisal of the working population as early as possible.