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In spite of the variety of well-meaning and comprehensive housing policies that have been adopted, implementation of housing policies and programmes has, over the years, been generally unsuccessful. The failure of these programmes has been the result of a number of factors, among which are

1 political instability and the resultant frequent overhaul or termination of policies;

2 inflation;

3 over-dependence of foreign inputs for housing and problems associated with this phenomenon;

4 poor management;

5 lack of effective machinery for mobilizing financial resources for investment in housing;

6 lack of coordination.

The low production of the housing sector resulting from the ineffective implementation of the various housing policies has been attributed to three basic constraints (Songsore, 2003). These are institutional, resource and technological constraints.

In the public housing sector, frequent overhaul of housing policies creates uncertainty and disorientation, which militates against long-term housing and sustained programming by the national housing agencies. The resultant ad hoc programming frequently leads to inaction and gross inefficiencies in housing delivery.

Since most of the so-called new policies are in reality extensions or elaborations of previous policies, a more institutionalized way of introducing new policies would contribute substantially to ensuring a stable and continuous output by public housing agencies. Other areas of institutional constraints are administrative and legal. Specifically, administrative constraints consist of procedures used in planning and programming housing projects, obtaining development permits, in the tendering and monitoring of construction and in the allocation of housing.

Another critical constraint in the housing system is lack of building materials, finance and appropriate technologies for housing and land. The undefined nature of land ownership in some circumstances, coupled with the lack of an efficient system of registering titles to land, are factors which bear on the extent of participation in the real estate market.

The combination of these factors led to policies and programmes that promoted the production of housing units, the cost of which were so high as to be affordable to the low-income group. Despite the above measures, the housing stock in the country has not improved much over the years; it has increased by a slight margin, whereas the housing deficit has increased by a substantial margin.