Bridging Nigeria’s Affordable Housing Gap: The Role of Religious Institutions in Sustainable Housing Development

Abstract

Nigeria’s affordable housing deficit exposes households to overcrowding, insecure tenure, inadequate infrastructure and unhealthy living conditions, revealing a development crisis that governmental and market interventions have not resolved. This study examines how religious institutions can complement efforts to advance affordable housing development in Nigeria between 2015 and 2025. Its objectives are to assess their housing contributions and limitations; examine how their resources, networks and structures can support affordable housing; evaluate their capacity to promote sustainable housing; and propose a framework for collaborative intervention. The study is limited by reliance on documentary sources, uneven institutional records, and difficulty generalizing diverse religious practices across Nigeria. The Capability Approach and Social Gospel Theory provide complementary frameworks. The Capability Approach views housing as a means of expanding freedoms, security and wellbeing, while Social Gospel Theory interprets shelter provision as Christian social responsibility, justice and communal action. Methodologically, the study employs qualitative documentary research, drawing purposively on peer-reviewed literature, government publications, policy documents, reports and institutional materials addressing 2015–2025; no questionnaires, interviews, observations or statistical data analysis are employed. Findings indicate that religious institutions possess underutilized land, trust networks, volunteer capacity and welfare structures that can support housing finance, advocacy, construction partnerships and initiatives. A new finding is that their comparative advantage lies not merely in constructing houses, but in integrating shelter with livelihoods, social support, ethical stewardship and empowerment. The study concludes that faith–government–private sector partnerships can transform religious assets into sustainable housing capabilities, strengthening dignity, inclusion and communities.