Across West Africa, the housing deficit continues to widen, with millions of families struggling to access affordable, functional homes. Governments and private developers have launched countless housing schemes over the years, yet many of these projects fail to deliver the vibrant, livable communities they promise. Instead, they often become isolated estates, rows of housing “units” disconnected from the social, economic, and infrastructural fabric of the wider city.
The root cause of these failures is rarely the construction of the buildings themselves. More often, the challenge lies in poor planning and sequencing. Housing schemes that treat development as simply putting up walls and roofs miss the bigger picture: homes cannot thrive in a vacuum. Without roads, utilities, schools, healthcare, and economic opportunities, even well-built estates quickly lose their appeal. Families either avoid moving in or abandon them altogether, leaving behind “ghost estates.”
This reality underscores the urgent need for a different approach, one that emphasizes community-building, not just housing delivery. Developers, policymakers, and stakeholders must look beyond the physical unit to consider the ecosystem that sustains it. That is where sequencing becomes not just important, but decisive.
The Importance of Sequencing in Building Livable Communities
Sequencing refers to the order in which elements of a housing development are planned and delivered. In urban development, sequencing can determine whether a project thrives as a connected, dynamic neighborhood, or fails as an isolated cluster of buildings.
Successful communities are built on layers of interdependent infrastructure: transport networks, utilities, social facilities, commercial hubs, and residential housing. If these are delivered in the wrong order, the result is often dysfunction. For instance, building 1,000 houses before laying access roads or providing reliable water supply leaves residents stranded, dissatisfied, and unlikely to stay long term.
The guiding principle is simple: homes are not standalone assets. They only gain value when connected to the services and networks that sustain life.
Step 1: Prioritizing Connective Infrastructure
The first step in creating a successful housing community is to lead with connective infrastructure. Accessibility and connectivity are the foundation upon which every other element is built.
Access Roads and Transport
Before or in parallel with housing delivery, arterial roads linking the site to the city must be prioritized. Internal roads should also be planned to connect with existing mobility networks. Too many estates in West Africa fail because they are cut off from the city, forcing residents into long, costly commutes. Isolation discourages settlement and undermines the estate’s economic viability.
Utilities and Networked Services
Infrastructure is not just about roads. Electricity, water, sewage, and internet must be integrated as part of regional networks, not treated as afterthoughts. In contexts where public utilities are unreliable, developers can explore phased partnerships with independent power producers, boreholes, or solar-hybrid mini-grids. The goal is to ensure that as soon as residents move in, they can access basic services without resorting to makeshift solutions.
The Risk of Ignoring Infrastructure
When developers neglect connective infrastructure, the results are predictable: completed housing estates remain empty or under-occupied, families face daily hardships, and property values decline. By contrast, leading with roads and utilities not only supports livability but also boosts investor confidence, enhances demand, and ensures long-term sustainability.
Step 2: Phasing Development Around Community Anchors
Once roads and utilities are in place, the next priority is to establish community anchors, facilities and spaces that create daily activity and give residents reasons to live, work, and socialize within the estate.
Mixed-Use Clusters First
Rather than starting with rows of identical houses, the first phase of development should include a mix of shops, schools, clinics, and public spaces. These facilities immediately generate foot traffic and make the estate functional from day one.
Preventing the Ghost-Estate Effect
Housing schemes that deliver homes without these anchors often become “ghost estates,” where residents reluctantly move in but leave as soon as they realize daily life is unsustainable. By phasing residential blocks around community anchors, every new cluster of housing gains value from its proximity to social and commercial activity.
Incremental Growth
This approach also allows for incremental growth. Developers can expand outward in phases, ensuring that each batch of houses is tied to essential services. This strategy builds confidence among buyers and investors, while also spreading infrastructure costs over time.
Step 3: Integrating Social Infrastructure with Housing
Housing is about creating a supportive environment where families can thrive and social infrastructure plays a vital role in achieving this.
Education and Healthcare
Early provision of schools and healthcare facilities is critical. Even temporary or modular solutions can make a big difference.
Community Governance Structures
Setting up residents’ associations from the start encourages shared ownership of the estate’s future. These bodies can manage waste disposal, security, and maintenance, ensuring that services remain consistent over time.
Public Spaces and Social Interaction
Open spaces such as playgrounds, parks, or community centers foster social interaction and strengthen bonds among residents. These features may seem secondary, but they play a central role in building trust, reducing crime, and enhancing quality of life.
Why It Matters:
When social infrastructure is integrated alongside housing, families are more likely to settle long term, property values appreciate, and the estate becomes attractive to a diverse mix of residents. In contrast, schemes that neglect these elements often struggle to retain occupants.
Step 4: Aligning Housing Delivery with Real Market Demand
Many housing projects in West Africa have failed because developers prioritized supply over demand, building thousands of houses without confirming whether the target market could afford or even wanted them. Avoiding this pitfall requires careful alignment with real demand.
Market-Aligned Rollout
Instead of delivering 1,000 houses upfront, developers should phase delivery in smaller batches, 200 to 300 homes tied to confirmed demand. This allows them to test the market, adjust pricing, and improve design before committing to large-scale construction. It also prevents the buildup of unsold units that drain financial resources.
Flexible Land Use
Zoning should allow for flexibility. Some plots can be reserved for future retail, schools, or industry, rather than locking everything into residential use. As demand evolves, developers can adjust land use to reflect the needs of residents.
Affordability Considerations
Affordability is central to demand. Developers must design housing that reflects the income levels of the target population. This might include offering core-and-shell units that families can finish over time, or partnering with microfinance institutions to create accessible mortgage or rent-to-own schemes.
Step 5: Embedding Jobs and Mobility for Long-Term Sustainability
No community can thrive on housing alone. For a residential development to be truly sustainable, it must also provide access to jobs, commerce, and mobility. Otherwise, residents face long commutes, higher living costs, and eventual disinterest in staying within the estate or neighborhood.
Jobs and local commerce
Developers and governments should create frameworks where commercial spaces, workshops, and small business hubs are integrated into housing schemes. This allows residents to live, work, and spend within their communities, stimulating local economic growth.
Mobility and transport
Access to reliable transportation networks like bus terminals, bicycle lanes, or feeder roads connecting to main highways, is equally important. A community that isolates residents from city opportunities will fail in the long term.
The Economics of Integrated Communities: Costs and Cross-Subsidies
One of the biggest barriers to successful housing schemes in West Africa is financing. Building livable communities requires significant investment in infrastructure, social facilities, and long-term maintenance. Developers and policymakers must therefore adopt models that balance costs while ensuring affordability for end users.
- Understanding cost structures: A typical housing project involves land acquisition, infrastructure (roads, drainage, utilities), social amenities (schools, hospitals, parks), and housing units themselves. If these costs are passed entirely to buyers, housing becomes unaffordable for the very populations it aims to serve.
- Cross-subsidies as a solution: A practical strategy is to create a mix of housing products: premium homes that generate higher returns, alongside affordable units that are subsidized. For instance, revenue from commercial plots, retail centers, or higher-income housing can be reinvested to offset the cost of basic infrastructure or lower-cost housing.
- Public-private partnerships: Governments play a critical role in providing land, regulatory incentives, and sometimes core infrastructure. Developers, in turn, bring capital, expertise, and efficiency in delivery. When structured properly, these partnerships reduce risks while making projects financially viable.
- Long-term value creation: Instead of focusing only on upfront returns, integrated communities generate sustained value over decades. Well-planned neighborhoods appreciate faster, attract investment, and lower costs of social services for governments. This perspective justifies the upfront expense of sequencing development properly.
Strategies for Affordability and Inclusive Housing
Affordability is about designing a system that matches real household incomes with quality living standards. For housing schemes to succeed in West Africa, inclusivity and affordability must be deliberate outcomes, not accidental by-products.
- Flexible housing typologies: Instead of offering uniform units, developers should create a range of housing options, from one-room starter apartments to multi-bedroom family homes. This ensures inclusivity across income brackets, while still maintaining the cohesion of the community.
- Innovative financing: Mortgage penetration is still low in West Africa, and interest rates remain high. Creative approaches such as rent-to-own schemes, cooperative housing finance, or micro-mortgages tailored to informal sector workers can expand access.
- Sustainability as affordability: Finally, affordability must also consider long-term living costs. Energy-efficient designs, renewable power solutions, and water recycling systems reduce household expenses, making communities more financially sustainable over time.
Lessons from Across Africa: Adaptable Models and Best Practices
Across the continent, there are valuable lessons to draw from both successful and struggling housing projects. Each example highlights the importance of sequencing, integration, and sustainability.
Kenya
Incremental Housing in Nairobi: Nairobi has experimented with models that allow residents to progressively expand their homes. Instead of waiting for full financing, families move into core housing units and improve them over time. This flexibility makes homeownership more attainable for low- and middle-income households while reducing the risk of abandoned estates.
South Africa
Integrated Social Housing: South Africa’s approach to housing has emphasized building units and embedded them in areas with access to schools, clinics, and public transportation. By situating housing near urban centers and job markets, these developments are more resilient and attract long-term residents.
Nigeria
Challenges with Mass Housing Estates: In Nigeria, many government-backed estates have failed due to poor sequencing: housing blocks were built without adequate roads, drainage, or amenities. As a result, residents faced high living costs and poor quality of life, leading to eventual under-occupation. These failures reinforce the need for holistic planning.
Rwanda
Kigali’s Green Growth Model: Rwanda has pioneered eco-friendly urban projects that integrate sustainability principles into city planning. By focusing on clean energy, walkability, and efficient waste management, Kigali demonstrates how environmental priorities can coexist with affordable housing delivery.
Key takeaway:
The common thread across successful models is integration: housing projects that go beyond providing shelter to address livelihoods, mobility, and sustainability thrive. Those that focus narrowly on unit delivery without sequencing or supportive infrastructure struggle to remain viable.
Dutum Group
At Dutum, we recognize that the future of urban development in West Africa lies not in quick fixes but in sustainable, carefully sequenced approaches. Our philosophy aligns with three guiding principles: responsibility, innovation, and impact.
- Responsibility: We see housing as a responsibility to the people who will live, work, and raise families in these communities. Every project we take on is guided by the need to leave a positive legacy, ensuring infrastructure, safety, and livability are not compromised.
- Innovation: We embrace innovative strategies exploring eco-friendly materials that lower costs and allow flexibility.
- Impact: Beyond physical structures, Dutum is committed to community empowerment. Our initiatives extend to education, environmental stewardship, and capacity building, ensuring residents not only occupy homes but thrive within sustainable ecosystems.
Through this commitment, Dutum positions itself as a partner in shaping the future of housing across West Africa. We understand that success will be measured not by the number of units delivered, but by the strength and sustainability of the communities we help create.
Conclusion
The story of housing in West Africa is at a crossroads. For decades, mass housing projects have struggled due to poor planning, weak infrastructure, and lack of integration with broader economic realities.
The path forward requires sequencing development around infrastructure, social services, and economic opportunities.
Governments, private developers, and communities must work together in innovative partnerships, embracing financing models that cross-subsidize affordability while embedding sustainability at every stage.
At Dutum, we believe that housing is about creating environments where people can live, work, and grow. Our commitment to sustainable community development reflects this understanding and drives us to keep pushing for better practices in urban development.
Temitope Runsewe
MD, Dutum
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