Nigeria Housing Group Reports 15.2 Million Substandard Homes

Across Kenya and Nigeria, recent housing debates highlight a common gap between policies intended to expand access and the needs of people facing the greatest affordability pressures. Kenya’s Court of Appeal found that the Affordable Housing Act’s scheme left people with no income outside its consideration, though it stopped short of ruling the law unconstitutional—a decision critics say failed to follow through on the court’s own reasoning about the right to housing. In Nigeria, a new rent tax deduction offers some relief to renters, but the N500,000 cap is a deduction from taxable income, not a direct payment, so the actual tax savings are much smaller. Nigeria’s housing association has cited a deficit of nearly 15 million homes and plans to support 740,000 units by 2031, while a private venture is proposing 1,000 furnished rental apartments for professionals in Lagos. Lagos officials likewise say adequate housing requires affordability, access to services and infrastructure as well as new construction, and point to ongoing homeownership programs, housing projects and proposed tenancy reforms.