Ondo, FG Partner To Construct 1,000 Housing Units

Mr Akinwumi Sowore, Ondo State Commissioner for Lands and Housing, says the state government has partnered with the federal government (FG) to construct 1,000 housing units across the state.
Sowore made the disclosure on Thursday in Akure during a media parley organised by the commissioner for information, Mr Wale Akinlosotu, for state government officials to give stewardship of their offices.
Sowore, who said that the collaboration was to improve the housing issues in the state, explained that his ministry was saddled with construction, upgrade and maintenance of all public buildings to global standards.
According to him, the ministry has allocated 100 hectares of land to the Federal Housing Authority in Akure, Ikare, Ore and Ugbo for the construction of 1,000 housing units.
“Our ministry is in charge of acquisition of lands and payment of compensation, resolution of disputes, and management of government lands,” he said.
Also, Dr Banji Ajaka, Commissioner for Health, says no fewer than 4,000 people in the state’s informal sector would benefit from the Orange Health Insurance Scheme (ORANGHIS) recently inaugurated by Gov. Lucky Aiyedatiwa.
Ajaka explained that artisans, market women, farmers, commercial transport operators and private sector workers would be benefit from the scheme.
The commissioner said that 101,017 enrollees (public servants and their dependents) were, earlier, fully covered under ORANGHIS when it was first inugurated in the state.
According to him, “Over 460 surgeries have been performed in less than 2 years under ORANGHIS while we had massive recruitment of health professionals across all levels of care.”
Similarly, Prof. Simi Odimayo, special adviser to the governor on health, said that the ministry had distributed free drugs and health commodities worth N100 million to state secondary and tertiary health facilities/institutions since March 2023.
Odimayo explained that the ministry regularly paid the full hazard allowance for health workers.
He also said it approved the commencement of new entry points of GL 13 and 10 for doctors and nurses, respectively, as against the norm of GL 12 and 10.
According to him, the upgrade will attract more health professionals to the state and checkmate the exodus of existing ones.