In the previous piece, the
argument was that a lack of adequate financing or access to funds by the prospective
homeowners and developers are impacting the provision of affordable houses in
Ghana, Kenya and Nigeria. This made bridging the housing deficit in the three
countries unrealisable in 2018.
Finding lasting solutions to
the problems, governments in collaboration with other stakeholders made
concerted efforts in 2018. In her 2018 budget, the Ghanaian government pledged
to establish a National Mortgage and Housing Finance Scheme. The government
also changed Ghana Home Loans to Ghana Home Loan Bank, with a view of expanding
the agency scope and functions towards affordable housing provision in the
country.
The real estate and property
development sectors were boosted by the World Bank and African Development Bank’s
loan. The International Bank gave $34 million to help the country in resolving
lingering land crisis in regions and cities. The $15 million received from the
African Development was earmarked for lower-middle to middle-income Ghanaians
to become home ownership during the year, the move which “further entrench the GHL Bank’s market
leadership for providing affordable housing in Ghana and help Ghanaians in
these income brackets to actualise their dreams of owning a home.”
To foster innovative financing and helping
Ghanaian government achieving decent housing for her citizens by 2030, the
United Nations Office for Project Services equally signed Memorandum of
Understanding with the government for a 100,000
units affordable homes through a social impact investment initiative.
Like in Ghana, the International Finance Corporation and the
World Bank worked with banks and the Kenyan government on the development of a
collateral registry, removing the lack of proper documentation for loan
tracking. The National Housing Development Fund was established during the year
to manage access to funds by the prospective homeowners and developers.
The Kenya Mortgage Refinancing Company was also created to
address the high mortgage interest rates, unlocking the supply side as the government aims to create 500,000 affordable
homes in 5 years. Nigerian government released N500 billion to the Federal
Mortgage Bank of Nigeria to increase its funding capacity and increase access
to affordable housing in the country. Nigeria Mortgage Refinance Company
assisted real estate lenders in reorganizing about 30,000 mortgages to free up
capital.
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