Poor Nigerians grasp for breath as cement prices hit new highs

One week ago, cement prices in the country reached a fresh high of N10,500 for a 50kg bag.

Despite BUA Cement’s recent price drop of a 50kg bag of the product to N3,500, Vanguard Homes & Property discovered that the price increase cuts across manufacturers.

Within a week, between February 11 and today, the price of a 50kg bag of cement has jumped to almost N10,500 in several sections of Lagos, Ogun, and other states throughout the country, owing to inflation.

The growing cost of cement has caught end consumers off guard, since they had not anticipated the price increase.

Engr. Amos Adegoke, a building engineer who spoke with our correspondent, stated, “With the present growing price of cement, which is not even available, we will have to cease work on the project we are now working on. We must wait and watch what occurs in the coming weeks, and if the price increase continues, we will have no choice but to follow market trends, which will undoubtedly effect renters entering the building.

The recurrent increase in the product’s price has caused shops to suspend sales, fearing that manufacturers will raise prices soon, as many of them have closed shop against clients, claiming there is no cement now but we are awaiting cement.

According to several dealers, the cause for the rising product price is that manufacturers have raised their depot prices to a new high in response to the country’s general price increase.

According to a cement dealer in the Magboro region of Ogun State’s Obafemi-Owode Local Government region, the country is seeing a spike in cement pricing due to producers raising their depot prices, combined with high transportation costs.

Meanwhile, the Real Estate Developers’ Association of Nigeria (REDAN) has urged President Bola Tinubu to intervene, claiming that the increased cost of cement will harm the country’s economy.

In a recent statement, REDAN’s president, Aliyu Wamakko, urged Tinubu to convene cement makers to an immediate meeting to avoid more hardship for Nigerians.

According to Wamakko, the country is experiencing economic difficulty, and the rising cement costs will compound an already difficult position for Nigerians, particularly those working in the real estate sector.

“The price of ready-mix concrete will likewise grow, as will the cost of in-situ concrete manufacture. Such an increase, if permitted to occur, will exacerbate the nation’s economic condition,” he stated.

“Construction creates various jobs and helps to reduce the country’s poverty index. Unemployment leads to banditry, kidnapping, and armed robbery. Remember this.

“The federal government should also remember that we have 28 million housing deficit in Nigeria.”Cement is a vital component in the construction of buildings. The nation’s housing sector has suffered as a result of the frequency with which its prices have risen. Experience has demonstrated that high cement prices tend to encourage a decline in building quality.

On September 25, 2023, the Cement Producers Association of Nigeria warned that the government’s proposal to build concrete roads might raise cement prices from the current N5,000 to N9,000.

The price of cement has risen to N8,000 as of February 12, 2024.
Speaking on the consequences of growing costs, Wamakko stated that the government should take a long-term approach to addressing the reoccurring issue of cement price increases by encouraging expanded participation in the cement business. He believes it is unacceptable for Nigerians to spend more than N3,500 per bag of cement.

The REDAN boss urged the president to look into the reasons for the price rises and take measures to ensure that “the promised price of N3,500 by a cement manufacturer is met.”

According to Wamakko, any further increases in cement prices would pose a direct danger to the federal government’s ‘Renewed Hope’ housing initiative.

“Cement is a major component in building construction, serving as a binder substance, hardens and adheres to other materials to bind them together,” he added.

source: vanguard