Prof Osinbajo, Wemabod Chairman Call for Regional PPP Framework to Unlock Inclusive Housing
Former Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, on Tuesday called for a new regional housing model anchored on well-structured public-private partnerships (PPPs), declaring that inclusive and sustainable housing in Nigeria would remain impossible without coordinated land governance, infrastructure planning and housing delivery.
Speaking at the Wemabod Real Estate Outlook Conference 2026 in Lagos, Osinbajo said government must deliberately combine its control of land and infrastructure with private sector capital, efficiency and execution capacity to unlock affordable housing at scale.
“You cannot unlock inclusive housing if land, infrastructure and housing are treated as separate conversations,” Osinbajo said.
“Housing is not simply a commodity for those who can afford it. It is the cornerstone of socio-economic transformation, the foundation for equity, collective prosperity and the dignity of individuals.”
Delivering the keynote titled “From Bodija to the Future: Unlocking Land and Infrastructure for Inclusive Housing – A Regional Agenda,” he added: “Development models driven purely by profit cannot deliver inclusion. If housing is left only to the logic of the market, the poor and the middle class are structurally excluded.”
Drawing lessons from the historic Bodija Housing Estate in Ibadan, Osinbajo described it as “not just a housing project, but a development strategy,” noting that it was built on institutional clarity, infrastructure-first planning and deliberate social integration. “Infrastructure was delivered before occupation. It was treated as a public good and as a subsidy that made affordability and inclusion possible,” he said.
“Bodija was conceived as a complete neighbourhood, not a collection of houses. Different income groups lived together by design, not by accident. That is what inclusive planning looks like.”
He warned that modern housing delivery in the South-West had become fragmented, speculative and exclusionary. “Land is now acquired piecemeal, estates are gated and homogeneous, and infrastructure costs are pushed to households. The result is longer commutes, higher living costs, deeper inequality and cities that exclude rather than integrate,” Osinbajo said.
He identified land and infrastructure as the two binding constraints to inclusive housing, describing land scarcity as “institutional, not physical.” According to him, “there is land, but fragmented ownership, slow titling, speculation and weak planning enforcement have made it inaccessible for inclusive development.”
Calling for a new housing framework, Osinbajo said: “The way forward is properly structured public-private partnerships. Government controls land and can deliver infrastructure at scale. The private sector brings capital, execution and delivery efficiency. When states provide land, coordinate infrastructure and fast-track approvals, mixed-income housing becomes viable.”
He added: “States that control land can deliver inclusive housing if the political will exists. But it must be planning first, infrastructure next, housing last.”
Chairman of Odu’a Investment Company Limited, Otunba Bimbo Ashiru, said the future of real estate in Nigeria depends on “systems thinking, not isolated projects.”
He noted: “Unlocking land means reforming land administration, improving titling systems and reducing transaction inefficiencies. Unlocking infrastructure means fixing the foundational networks without which housing cannot be affordable. And inclusive housing means moving beyond rhetoric to delivery models that work for low- and middle-income Nigerians, not just the top end of the market.”
In his welcome address, Chairman of Wemabod Limited, Engr. Nureni Adisa, said the region stands at a critical crossroads. “We are witnessing vibrant economic growth alongside deepening housing inequality, urban sprawl against weak infrastructure, and land trapped in systems that limit its value for the common good,” he said.
“Sustainable growth is impossible without inclusive housing, and inclusive housing is impossible without unlocking land and deploying infrastructure deliberately. We must think and act regionally, because housing markets and urban challenges do not respect municipal boundaries.”
Managing Director of Wemabod Limited, Bashir Oladunni, described the conference as a “solution platform, not a talk shop.” He said: “Nigeria’s housing challenge is not just about supply, it is about access and affordability. At the heart of this challenge are two structural constraints: land and infrastructure. Without accessible, properly titled land, housing remains expensive. Without enabling infrastructure, housing cannot scale and cities cannot thrive.”
He added that regional development commissions now provide “the missing link between land, infrastructure and scale.”
Group Managing Director of Odu’a Investment Company Limited, AbdulRahman Yinusa, said real estate development must go beyond commercial returns. “Development must deliver lasting social and economic value,” he said, adding: “This platform is important because it aligns land administration, infrastructure investment and housing delivery as one integrated agenda for inclusive and productive urban growth.”
The event was well attended by other dignitaries such as government officials from the federal and state levels; captains of industry; leaders of the building professions; development partners; investors; members of the diplomatic and financial communities; the Board and Management of Wemabod Limited and Odu’a Investment Company Limited, the parent company.
