The Federal Government has listed the categories of Nigerians expected to benefit from its new cooperative housing initiative under the Renewed Hope Cooperative Reform and Revamp Programme (RH-CRRP).
The initiative, which is expected to drive affordable housing through cooperative societies, digital finance and strategic partnerships, will focus mainly on underserved and low-income Nigerians struggling with access to housing and mortgage financing.
Speaking during the 2026 Cooperative Housing Summit Africa (CHOSA) held in Abuja, the Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Security and Supervising Minister for Cooperative Affairs, Sen. Dr. Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi, said the programme would use cooperative systems to make home ownership more accessible across the country.
According to him, the housing initiative will prioritise women, youths, Persons with Disabilities (PWDs), farmers, informal sector workers, rural communities, low-income earners and other vulnerable populations.
The Minister said cooperative societies remain one of the strongest tools for economic inclusion and community development, especially in a country where millions of Nigerians are unable to afford decent housing.
“Cooperatives remain one of the most powerful vehicles for economic inclusion, community mobilization, self-help development, social solidarity, and shared prosperity,” he said.
“Through cooperative housing systems, people can pool resources, reduce costs, improve bargaining power, access financing collectively, and create sustainable pathways to home ownership.”
Aliyu Abdullahi explained that the Federal Government is also planning to establish a Cooperative Bank of Nigeria to support housing schemes, mortgages, infrastructure projects and community development initiatives linked to cooperatives.
He noted that the proposed bank would operate under a cooperative ownership structure and would mainly target underserved Nigerians, especially workers in the informal sector who often struggle to access traditional bank loans and mortgage facilities.
The Minister added that digital technology would play a major role in the success of the housing initiative, stressing that the government plans to digitise cooperative operations nationwide.
According to him, digital finance systems would improve transparency, financial management, cooperative member verification, project monitoring and mortgage repayment processes.
“Africa’s cooperative housing ecosystem cannot operate effectively in the modern era without robust digital infrastructure,” the Minister stated.
He also called on African governments to strengthen policies supporting cooperative housing, simplify land administration processes and encourage investments in affordable housing projects.
The Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Dr. Muttaqha Darma, represented by the Director of Public Buildings and Housing Development, Mr. Samuel Pemi, described cooperative housing as one of the most practical solutions to Africa’s growing housing deficit.
He said technology-driven finance would help improve mortgage administration and expand housing access for citizens in both formal and informal sectors.
Also speaking at the summit, the Founder of Nigeria Integrated Social Housing Cooperative Ltd. (NISH), Dr. Saheed Adelakun, criticised the traditional Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model often used in housing delivery.
According to him, affordable housing in Nigeria now requires a “Public-Private-People Partnership” approach that directly involves intended homeowners in housing projects.
“We need houses that low and middle-income earners can truly afford,” Adelakun said.
“Government, developers, cooperatives and homebuyers must work together.”
Meanwhile, the President of the Cooperative Federation of Nigeria (CFN), Mrs Hannatu Mershak, said the federation currently supervises more than 50,000 cooperatives with over 30 million members across Nigeria.
She urged governments, investors and financial institutions to work more closely with cooperative societies to address Nigeria’s housing shortage and improve access to affordable homes for millions of Nigerians.
