Cement Hits N13,000/Bag: Housing Expert Urges FG to Cut Taxes, Subsidise Production

A housing sector expert, Aliyu Wammakko, has urged the Federal Government to cut taxes on cement production and introduce subsidies to address the rising cost of building materials and housing in Nigeria.

Wammakko, a former President of the Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria, REDAN, made the call in an interview with DAILY POST on Friday.

His comments come amid a spike in house rents driven by increasing prices of building materials nationwide.

According to Wammakko, the price of cement has risen by at least 50 percent in recent months and is worsening Nigeria’s housing deficit.

“The most nagging issue today in Nigeria is the price of building materials,” he said.

“People are complaining about paying higher rent. You don’t have to see the fault of the landlords because they go to the same market you go as a tenant.

“The higher cost of rent now in Nigeria doesn’t come by accident. It has its genesis in the cost of building materials in the country.

“Presently, cement is about N13,000 per bag. As far back as March 2025, I bought cement for N7,500. So now it is about N13,000 and moving upward,” he said.

He noted that soaring prices of cement and iron rods are making home ownership increasingly unaffordable for ordinary Nigerians.

Wammakko said the government should review multiple taxes and levies imposed on cement manufacturers to enable price reduction.

“If they want to give a solution to the whole saga, they should be able to bring at least a subsidy in terms of cement production and cut all the taxes that have been associated with it so that the producers can sell cement at a price that is affordable to Nigerians,” he said.

“And I’m sure that will bring down the cost of houses in Nigeria as well.”

The housing expert also called on the Federal Government to sign the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Bill, also known as the RECON Bill, passed by the 9th National Assembly.

He further urged the government to channel more funding into the Federal Mortgage Bank to provide affordable finance for housing construction.

“The solution to the housing deficit in the country is for the government to channel more money into the Federal Mortgage Bank so that people can get affordable finance for affordable construction,” he said.

“We are thinking of at least not less than N1 trillion into the Federal Mortgage Bank,” Wammakko stated.