COAS ADVANCES WELFARE AGENDA AS ARMY COMMISSIONS AFFORDABLE HOUSING IN IBADAN

The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Waidi Shaibu, has commissioned a 60-unit Affordable Home Ownership Option for All Soldiers (AHOOAS) Housing Estate and a Post Service Housing Development Limited (PHDL) Shopping Complex at Akopo, Ibadan, marking another step in the Nigerian Army’s drive to improve the welfare and post-service security of its’ personnel.

In a statement released by the Acting Director, Army Public Relations, Colonel Appolonia Anele, the commissioning was described as part of the Nigerian Army’s sustained commitment to the Soldier First philosophy, with emphasis on access to decent, affordable housing as a foundation for morale, operational efficiency and long term stability for soldiers and their families.

At the event, the Army leadership underscored housing as a strategic welfare priority, noting that the AHOOAS initiative is structured to ensure that soldiers are able to retire with dignity through secure home ownership in locations of their choice. The scheme is positioned not only as a welfare intervention but also as a stabilizing factor for troops during active service.

The COAS highlighted the success of the pilot phase of the AHOOAS project in Idu, Abuja, where over 400 housing units have been delivered and fully occupied by serving and retired soldiers. Building on that outcome, the Army has expanded the programme to Ibadan, Benin, Jos, Akwa Ibom and other locations nationwide, while also moving to fast track access to home ownership for Army Warrant Officers.

Lieutenant General Shaibu acknowledged the support of the Oyo State Government for its’ cooperation with military formations and commended traditional institutions for fostering peaceful civil-military relations. He also praised the management of PHDL for maintaining professional standards in project execution and recognized Family Homes Funds Limited for its partnership with the Nigerian Army in constructing 50 housing units dedicated to widows of fallen soldiers.

The Army leadership further called on state governments across the country to support future phases of the scheme through land allocation, stressing that affordable housing remains a central pillar of the Army’s broader transformation agenda in alignment with the vision of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Providing project details, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of PHDL, Major General Isiah Alison, explained that the Ibadan estate comprises 30 two-bedroom units for Non-Commissioned Soldiers and 30 three-bedroom units for Senior Non-Commissioned Soldiers. Five percent of the houses were allocated at no cost to soldiers who sustained disabilities in the line of duty, while 70 percent were offered at highly subsidized rates.

He added that homes built at costs of up to ₦30 million were made available to soldiers for as low as ₦7.5 million, reinforcing that the initiative was conceived strictly as a welfare programme rather than a commercial venture. Similar housing developments and service shopping complexes are ongoing in other locations, aimed at supporting small-scale businesses and improving the economic wellbeing of soldiers’ families.