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aspect that empowers the minister to determine terms and conditions for loans from the fund as well as specify the conditions and terms of repayment of any loan obtained from the fund.

The Bill says any loan granted by FMBN to a mortgage institution will be secured by a block of existing mortgages under cover of sales and administration agreement to be executed between the supervisory bank and mortgage institution.

It adds that a Nigerian worker earning an income of say, N10, 000 and above per annum in both the public and the private sectors of the economy will contribute 2.5 percent of basic monthly salary to the Fund.

An interest rate of 4 per cent will be payable on the contributions. A commercial or merchant bank has to invest 10 percent of its loans and advances in the fund at an interest rate of 1 per cent above the interest rate payable on current account by banks.

In the same way, the Bill will require every registered insurance company to invest a minimum of 20 per cent of its non-life funds and 40 per cent of its life funds in real estate development with the expectation that not less than 50 per cent will be paid into the fund through the FMBN at an interest rate not exceeding 4 percent.

The Bill also states that all registered Pension Fund Administrators will invest a minimum of 10 percent of their pension funds and assets in real estate development, while the federal government will make adequate financial contributions to the fund for the purpose of granting of long term loans and advances for housing development.