Housing Pattern In Nigeria
Nigeria is located in Western Africa and has the highest population in Africa. The housing pattern in Nigeria depends on the geographical location of the houses. Those near the coastal areas, have roofs and walls made from raffia palm that is found in abundance in that region. Nigeria housing near the forests usually has rectangular houses made of mud. However, wealthy people of the area can afford to have wavy iron roofs.
In the northern part and in the central region of Savanna, there are round buildings made of mud that have a roof of slanting grass thatch. Flat roofs made of mud can be seen in the drier parts of the extreme north. A few mud houses in the area are also covered with a cement layer. Large houses are usually designed along with an open courtyard and they usually have cisterns or barrels to collect rainwater.
In the colonial period, there were Government Reserve Areas or GRA, where British officials used to live in a separate are in Nigeria housing. This is why, after independence, the people of Africa are always seen to crave for such houses. The population of Nigeria increased manifold, reducing the employment opportunities for people and making it a poor country.
Overcrowding became a major problem and lead to the spread of slums and the emergence of shantytown suburbs in almost all the major urban centers. Generally, the construction of houses is dealt by people themselves as banks normally refuse to extend money for construction of homes. So, the individuals do not have choice and willingly or unwillingly, they have to rely on what they have saved during their lifetime.
There is a federal housing program that makes available funds to people to construct their low-cost houses. This program is especially designed for workers who have lower and middle incomes in Nigeria, and for those who live in the adjacent large towns and the government headquarters of the area.