– UN official,Leilana Fartha advised FG to impose taxes on vacant houses
– Most residents in Nigeria’s ballooning informal settlements live without access to even the most basic services
– There is an estimated housing shortage of 22 million units
UN Special rapporteur on the rights to adequate housing, Leilana Fartha has urged the Federal Government to ointroduce vacant home taxes to address housing challenges in the country.
Speaking at a news conference in Abuja on Monday, Fartha shown concerns over the poor living conditions of Nigerians,saying informal settlements house about 69% of the urban population.
“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.
“There is an estimated housing shortage of 22 million units.
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“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 fulfill any housing need, with many remaining vacant as vehicles for money laundering or investment.”
Fartha added that the federal Government must take quick measures to address forced evictions.
Responding to the rent control bill that failed in the national assembly, the UN official said that the bill didn’t see the day because it wasn’t ripe.
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“The idea of controlling rent caps is hotly debated in many countries.
‘‘New York just tried to have rent control laws passed; Barcelona is close to getting rent-free as rent is actually frozen for some period of five to seven years.So, in many jurisdictions, they have started to impose vacant home tax.
“I support that kind of move from a human rights point of view only where that money from the tax is directly put into the creation of affordable housing.
“In the case of Nigeria, it could be used as a fund to upgrade informal settlements.”
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