Housing crisis: Fix building system, not cement prices —Oyedele
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Fame Oyster & Co. CEO Olufemi Oyedele urges the federal government to abandon attempts to regulate cement prices, arguing that Nigeria’s housing crisis stems from a faulty building production system rather than the activities of cement manufacturers.
The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Fame Oyster & Co., Mr Olufemi Oyedele, has called on the Federal Government to stop focusing on cement price regulation and instead address the structural weaknesses in Nigeria’s building production system.
Oyedele said regulating cement without reducing the country’s overdependence on the material could prove counterproductive. He argued that Nigeria has abundant natural resources and construction waste that could be converted into affordable building materials, yet these opportunities remain largely untapped.
He cited examples such as Patti shale around Lokoja in Kogi State, clay deposits in parts of Niger State, and granite in the South-West as locally available materials that could be processed into bricks and building blocks. Oyedele also highlighted construction and demolition waste as a major opportunity, noting that about 34 per cent of construction costs in Nigeria goes into waste that is not recycled.
The real estate expert further urged the government to establish a committee to examine alternative building materials and construction technologies. He maintained that tackling the structural weaknesses in the construction sector, rather than simply controlling the price of cement, would provide a more sustainable solution to the country’s housing affordability crisis.