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Chairman, Nigerian Society of Engineers,(NSE) Ikeja Branch, Adeolu Ogundare (left); presenting an award to the special guest of honour, Lagos State Commissioner for Works & infrastructure, Ganiyu Johnson at the NSE 2016 Engineering Week Dinner and Awards Night in Lagos State.

Amid the challenges of quacks and non-compliance to job specifications confronting the built industry, engineers have been tasked to contribute meaningfully to the growth and development of the economy.

This they should do by maintaining strict adherence to the core values of professionalism in discharging their responsibilities to the society, which looks up to them.
General Manager, Energy and Projects, Lafarge Africa PLC, Mr. Lanre Opakunle and the Lagos State Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Ganiyu Johnson, an engineer, gave the charge at a dinner and awards night themed: ‘Adequate, Reliable and Sustainable Energy in Nigeria’ organised by the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), Ikeja Branch as part of activities marking the 2016 Engineering Week in Lagos.

Delivering a lecture on the topic: “Innovation and Ethics of Engineering Practice”, Opakunle pointed out that engineering profession creates value to the society; hence, practitioners must not fail the people, which would hold them responsible and accountable in their activities. According to him, adding values through ethical professional practice would create a lot of compensations as well as opportunities in growing the local terrains and the nation at large.

“I remember some years ago when we had the crisis of building collapse and in the true sense what was responsible for that, if we do a real cost analysis for each building that has collapsed, we will understand that a lot of the times we compromised; whether building, structural, electrical or chemical engineer. We have to make sure the right thing is done”, he said.

He said the current economic challenge should be a springboard for engineers to be creative and overcome the current limitations. “We must think of what we can do to move the nation forward and how we can add value to the economy. We must initiate actions to get things going.”

Speaking with The Guardian, Ganiyu Johnson, who was the Special Guest of Honour, said “it is important to involve engineers in revitalising the economy since they know how to do it best. He stressed that Fellows of the profession would continue to encourage the younger ones to improve on their ethics and innovation.

On the use of substandard products by some engineers, which often lead to cases of collapsed buildings, he stated: ” It is a collective
responsibility; the builders, the designers and the contractors, they must comply with the design specifications, which is key, and if they do, there won’t be problem.”

He said government would continue to engage project managers and consultants as well as Fellows of Nigerian Society of Engineering for projects in the state, for them to learn and grow while external monitors would be hired to ensure that the right things are done.

Contributing, the Ikeja Branch Chairman, Adeolu Ogundare, urged engineers to continuously strive towards bringing value and improvement to bear in any system with integrity.“When we are offering services, we must do it according to professional ethics. As a society we have set the engineering regulation and monitoring unit to go out to sites and organisations and make sure that those practicing are the ones qualified to practice. “We also have put in place internal control mechanism which states that engineers must practice according to the dictate of the society and if they are found wanting, we have a way of dealing with that, which includes facing disciplinary committee of the society and withdrawal of the license of such an engineer” he said.

Earlier, the branch instituted a scholarship scheme for three secondary school students in the range of N25, 000, N50, 000 and N100, 000. The society also launched its maiden Engineering Magazine, and presented awards to Fellows of the society who excelled in quiz competition as well as to individuals and corporate organisations.

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In an interview, he said: “When we talk about housing deficit, people actually think it is limited to the lower class of the society. It will not be fair to look at the housing deficits challenge in Nigeria from one side. The deficits actually exist among all the market segments: the top, the middle and the lower classes.’’

in partnership with stakeholders, Adeyinka said the deficit could be managed. Besides, through the use of modern innovative technologies, some initiatives aimed at catering for the needs of each segment of the real estate market could be executed.

For instance, he said its parent company- Palton Morgan Holding Company, Grenadines Homes and Propertymart, is working as subsidiaries, to provide for the different classes of the market. Propertymart caters for the middle and the lower classes, by developing affordable property, for example, that civil servants and young executives can buy.

On the other hand, Grenadines Homes, he said, was established to provide for the housing needs of the upper class whose projects are usually in exclusive areas.

To boost housing units in the A and B luxury and upper segment, Grenadines Homes is undertaking a new housing project, called the “Atlantic Resort”, which on completion, will add 165 residential units to the upper end of the market.

Adeyinka said it was conceived in response to the demand for mixed-use developments driven by the rise of the middle class and a thriving business environment in Lagos state.

“The Atlantic Resort concept is basically around live, work and play in one, beautiful environment. We are looking at a model that will achieve self-sufficiency in terms of necessary facilities that will make the residents to be productive in their respective endeavours. There will be recreational, educational, shopping and tourism facilities, among others. In other words, you can control the world from the estate. It’s already attracting foreign direct investments. The phase one alone is going to cost $150 million. It’s a project we need at a time like this,” he said.

The Marketing Manager, Grenadines Homes, Ms. Francisca Dyegh, explained that the Atlantic Resort concept as a well-thought-out project.

He explained: “What other companies are doing is different from what we are doing; they are selling land to developers to develop, but what we are doing in Grenadines Homes is that we are directly responding to need of people within this vicinity. Atlantic Resort is about the only mixed used development that can give you the opportunity to live, work and play in one serene, beautiful environment.’’

The Managing Director, Brash Brands, Dubai, Kiran Gill, said her company is coming into the project to tell the story of Atlantic Resort to Nigeria in a compelling way that will attract investors locally and internationally.

“So, we understand what the ambition and the hopes are for Grenadines Homes, what they’re planning to do with the development. And for us at Brash, we look at how we can tell that story. To tell that story in a compelling way to consumers and to investors who are looking to buy.

Stakeholders believe that with a growing middle class and the need to cater for their housing needs, which is projected to hit 7.6 million by 2030, the prospects for this category in terms of investment potential.

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A PricewaterhouseCoopers’ mid 2015 report had stated that the Nigerian real estate sector would be valued at $13.65bn this year, compared to $9.16bn in 2014, accounting for 7.6 per cent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product.

One area that will experience boom in the sector is office development, with over 150,000 square metres of lettable space currently being produced for delivery over the next six months to one year.

A report by North Court Real Estate, entitled: ‘Nigeria real estate market outlook 2016’, stated that the office development pipeline had so much to offer.

It added, “The development pipeline has never been so robust; it is difficult to predict the potential process of absorption. Over 150,000sqm of lettable space is currently being produced for delivery within six to 24 months. That’s not counting inactive developments that have been stalled.

“The office development pipeline is very rich. Never has the nation enjoyed such influx of investment office space available for take-up by third parties as against owner-occupation, which was the norm in the past. The invasion may drive prices down moderately; we also postulate that occupiers may surrender leases in older buildings in preference for new builds, which may be willing to offer competitive prices.”

As expected, Lagos, according to the report, will continue to take the lead with over 25,000sqm to be delivered, with Ikoyi officially becoming the prime office destination, while Eko Atlantic City gradually takes shape; Abuja and other second tier cities will follow.

Some high grade office spaces expected to be delivered include the African Capital Alliance’s 6,670m2 Alliance Place in Lagos, with a construction cost of N165m, and the 15,734m2 Heritage Place being developed by Actis.

Others are The Wings, a 27,000m2 luxury office space being developed by RMB Westport and Oando Plc; Lake Point Towers; Madina Tower; and the 26,000m2 World Trade Centre in Abuja.

According to the report, some developments were delivered in 2015 such as the Civic Towers and Landmark Tower, which both enjoyed fairly rapid take-up but at rates less than originally desired due to the economic crunch.

“In all, there were not as many lease transactions as developers and realtors would have hoped. Some A and B-grade offices have remained empty for a prolonged period as most companies opted to remain in their current spaces. Existing rents have either stayed or lowered across locations, while new leases were closed at low rates,” it added.

The Director, Real Estate Advisory, North Court Real Estate, Tayo Odunsi, noted that office projects close to completion would create a lot of leasing activity in 2016.

“But that same cannot be said for new constructions. In all, real estate will be responsive and reactive to positive or negative economic sentiments, respectively.

“The outlook for the Nigerian real estate market in 2016 will be largely dependent on the overall performance of the economy as the demand, supply and price of space is contingent on the well-being of occupiers, developers and investors,” he stated.

Despite the lull in the retail sub-sector, it is also expected to experience some growth based on certain economic indices.

The retail pipeline is expected to take delivery of over 100,000m2 of space with developments such as the Abia Mall, Asokoro City Mall, Benin Mall, Onitsha Mall, Owerri Mall, Maryland Mall, Oasis Mall and Capital Mall.

In the residential sub-sector, experts say there will always be demand but that the supply gap needs to be covered.

A partner at the real estate surveying and valuation firm, Osas and Oseji, Mr. Kehinde Akinyemi, said the sector would still do well because it was expected to, in spite of whatever turn the economy took.

He added, “The first priority of any human is to get accommodation for himself and his family. What may not happen is the hype of values going up, but there will still be activities in the sector.

“Now that we have a civilian government, more investors will still come to the sector in spite of all the negative projections; there is confidence in the sector and when these investors come in, they will demand for residential and office accommodation to establish businesses.”

According to him, the ability of any subsector of the industry to do well will depend on the location of the transaction.

“Where commercial will do better than residential will be a function of the location; if you are in a commercial area, commercial real estate will do well, but if you are in a densely populated place, residential will be considered,” Akinyemi said.

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Similar to the United Kingdom Housing Act, 2004, which among other things, makes provision for a system of assessing housing conditions and enforcing standards, the Nigerian Housing Act is expected to harmonise all the existing policies on housing and land administration into a law.

A professor of Housing and Urban Regeneration at the University of Lagos, Gbenga Nubi, who canvassed for the enactment of the Act and active government participation in the building industry, said that like the Universal Basic Education that guaranteed every Nigerian child access to primary and secondary education, there must also be access to decent housing for all.

“The Nigerian housing sector, in all its component areas, requires active government participation as a firm enabler and not just a regulator,” he said.

According to him, about 60 per cent of the present population of the country lack adequate housing, while an overview of the sector reveals that access to adequate and affordable housing remains elusive to many Nigerians in both the urban and rural areas.

Nubi added, “It is a necessity of government to give every Nigerian whatever they need to make sure that no Nigerian sleeps under the bridge like a dog.

“It is something that when it becomes a law, it will no longer be an obligation but a rule of the government. An Act will specify the age at which you can get your own house and the quality of housing, among other things. We have a building code, which should be an important part of the Act; the building code has not become law, but it should be made an important component of the Act.”

The expert said all the existing laws on housing such as the National Housing Fund should be put together under the proposed Act.

Nubi said, “The Act should specify the quality of houses and what they should look like, and should be the basis for a law that every house in Nigeria must meet certain specifications and every worker must have access to housing.

“Now, there are people who take the government to court that they didn’t do a particular thing, when there are laws and the government is not obeying it, because you know it is a law then you can take the government to court.

“People are taking the government to court concerning the violation of the Electoral Act, because there is a law; politicians can take the government to court, so also in the medical profession. When there is a law, the people can find something to fight with; but when everything is policy, it becomes optional for the government to implement.”

The Principal Partner of the estate surveying and valuation firm, Kola Akomolede & Co., Chief Kola Akomolede, said the Housing Act, if enacted, would strengthen the housing sector.

He added, “Any government that doesn’t obey it can now be prosecuted. For example, the National Housing Fund makes provision that the local and state governments should put a certain amount into the housing fund and that they should make workers to pay a certain percentage of their salary into the fund, but they are not doing it; not many people are doing it; but if it becomes an Act like that of taxation, people will have to obey it.”

He, however, noted that the limitation of the Act could be who would provide the housing.

Akomolede added, “The problem is who to provide the houses. I am sure there is no government that would want to make that kind of law because they know they can’t provide the houses that will be involved.

“Government must supply houses before they can make such a law; if they are not supplying houses, they cannot implement the law.”

A former Federal Controller, Federal Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development, Mr. Olayinka Onaeko, stated that the country needed more funding than laws so as to bridge the housing deficit.

He said, “As far as I am concerned, we don’t have problems of laws or statutory problems. The problem with housing is funding and not relevant laws; we have more than enough laws, Acts and policies in the housing sector that are relative to housing provision.

“We have the Land Use Act and National Building Code, among others; they are all statutory laws. So, I don’t think getting another one is going to improve the number of housing units or reduce the deficit in the sector. The major problem is funding and it should be attacked by repositioning the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria and other primary mortgage institutions.”

Nubi noted that with the Housing Act, the government would have no choice but look into the nation’s housing crisis.

He added, “The housing policy is very robust and is so large for every government to execute; if the housing policies and the building code are put together and we are able to back them as a law, when there is violation, it will be addressed in court.

“And the court will force the government to implement the law; it is a stage in any national development. There must be a law before it can be enforced.”

PUNCH.

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According to some members of the society, who spoke at a three-day conference in Lagos on the theme: ‘Compliance and intervention for survival’, Nigeria can become one of the world’s leading economies by 2030 with the right reforms and investments.

The President, ASSE Nigeria, Mr. Kamil Abiodun, noted that there was a need to turn the tide of economic development by charting a more creative path towards improving the safety culture of all workers in the country.

“We need to increase advocacy on good safety practice and compliance in ensuring we match up the economic growth by preventing clear, present and potential catastrophic occurrences that may hinder national development,” he said.

He said that the positive report on the country’s growth potential should spur an increase in safety professionals’ marketability and value addition to the economic growth.

The global President-elect of the society, Mr. Michael Belcher, said Nigeria was already a big player in the world and international safety standards must be promoted to stimulate more growth.

He said, “We believe that safety professionals will do a lot by bringing the political class to pick interest in safety standards. We recognise the need to work with safety professionals and there is nowhere else to be right now than in Nigeria considering its growth potential.

“We need to challenge the status quo in our quest to protect people and properties for national growth and development.”

The Secretary and Executive Director, ASSE, Mr. Fred Fortman Jr., said that there must be an increased commitment to safety practice in the country.

“Safety does not happen by accident but when corporate leading, direction and commitment meet. Nigerians are the greatest assets and resources of the country, and this is the right time to make something special happen for the country in terms of safety,” he said.

A past global president of the society, Mr. Rick Pollock, in his paper on ‘Ethics of culture: Understanding human error-dispelling myths’, said human error was a major cause of accidents.

He added that there was a need to eliminate and control human errors and mistakes as well as things that encouraged human errors in work places.

PUNCH.

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