MEDIUM-income –bracket subscribers will have a pride of place under an ambitious public- private partnership housing project - Trademore Housing Estate – that was flagged-off last week at Ngwu/Ubani Community, Uzoakoli Road, Umuahia, Abia State.

A mixed –level of ‘cocktail’ of some 5, 000 units is to be built under the 250 hectares of land scheme, the pilot phase containing 1,000 housing units to be completed within the first 24 months while the second and third phases will follow subsequently.

Under the project, Trademore International Holdings Limited is partnering with Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) and targeting civil servants in Abia State as well as other contributors of the National Housing Fund (NHF).

Chairman, Trademore Int’l Holdings Limited, Emmanuel Mbaka, an engineer, said that the idea of a housing project was conceived to ease the housing problems of the civil servants and self-employed people of Abia state and also to bring housing and infrastructural development to the communities.

He assured Abia State Governor, Chief Theodore Orji Governor people of Ngwu/ Ubani that “the required resources in terms on manpower and technology are very much on ground and the necessary machinery have been set in motion to ensure this project is delivered in record time.

“We also want to assure civil servants, and self-employed individuals in Abia state of stress-free mortgage procedures in buying the houses as our strategic partners- Platinum Mortgage Bank Limited, and the Federal mortgage Bank of Nigeria are on ground in Abia state and have assured us of speedy processing of NHF loans for individuals willing to buy into the estate.

“We look forward to your continued support and hospitality in the years to come and we also promise to contribute our quota in terms of providing employment, and in other areas of corporate social responsibility to ensure the further development and advancement of the communities.”

FMBN managing director, Mr. Gimba Ya’u Kumo, said the issue of providing decent and affordable housing for Nigerians is not the sole responsibility of the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria. “We cannot tackle it alone. We must involve everybody. So, we need everybody’s cooperation in this respect.”