…Ogun Govt links industrial expansion to investment, infrastructure, security
…Bank urges youths to embrace mortgage financing, says Nigeria needs 700,000 housing units annually
Toyyibat Qasim and Victorial Ikhedie
Gateway Mortgage Bank Limited has recorded a 12 per cent increase in profit after tax, rising from ₦179.08m in 2024 to ₦199.79m in the 2025 financial year, despite prevailing economic challenges in the country.
The bank also recorded growth in its total assets, which increased by 22 per cent from ₦11.09bn in 2024 to ₦13.52bn in 2025, while its loan portfolio expanded by 26 per cent to ₦5.77bn.
The financial performance was disclosed at the bank’s ninth Annual General Meeting held in Abeokuta, Ogun State, on Friday, where shareholders reviewed its audited financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2025.
Addressing shareholders, the Chairman of the Board of Directors, Samuel Durojaye, said the bank had sustained positive growth despite the difficult operating environment, attributing its performance partly to the support of the Ogun State Government, its ministries and agencies.
He said the bank had continued to support the state’s housing initiatives by providing mortgage facilities to beneficiaries of government housing projects.
A breakdown of the financial statements showed that profit before tax increased by approximately five per cent, from ₦271.25m in 2024 to ₦284.34m in 2025.
Interest income from loans rose by 28 per cent, from ₦756m to ₦969.48m, while income from investments increased by 63 per cent, from ₦689.36m to ₦1.13bn.
The bank’s deposit liabilities also grew by 36 per cent, from ₦3.69bn to ₦5.02bn, reflecting increased deposits during the financial year.
However, operating expenses increased by 32 per cent, from ₦1.12bn to ₦1.48bn, while the bank recorded an impairment allowance charge of ₦16.49m, compared with a reversal of ₦13.28m in the preceding year.
Speaking on the importance of mortgage financing to economic development, Durojaye said Nigeria needed to construct approximately 700,000 housing units annually over the next decade to bridge the country’s housing deficit.
He explained that mortgage institutions played a critical role in making home ownership accessible to individuals and supporting property developers to expand housing supply.
According to him, the availability of more housing units would help address the persistent rise in rents across major urban centres.
Durojaye also identified the difficulty of raising long-term funds as one of the major challenges confronting mortgage banks, explaining that the nature of mortgage financing required funding arrangements that matched the long repayment periods of housing loans.
“The minimum tenure for a mortgage is 10, 15 or 20 years. You cannot take people’s money when they expect it back in 90 days and put it into a property that will not pay back until 15 years,” he said.
He, however, urged Nigerians, particularly young workers, to embrace mortgage financing early rather than committing substantial portions of their earnings to annual rent payments.
“Instead of paying N2m in rent every year, why don’t you buy a house and start paying N200,000 monthly from your salary?” he asked.
He explained that prospective homeowners could acquire properties through mortgage arrangements and spread payments over an agreed period, thereby building long-term assets instead of continually spending on rent.
The chairman said the bank had intensified public enlightenment through radio programmes, market engagements and interactions with civil society organisations to encourage Nigerians to take advantage of mortgage opportunities.
He added that the bank was prepared to leverage available Federal Government intervention funds to expand access to housing finance.
Meanwhile, the Ogun State Commissioner for Finance, Otunba Dapo Okubadejo, who represented Governor Dapo Abiodun at the meeting, attributed the growing investment profile of the state to improvements in infrastructure, security and the business environment.
Okubadejo said investment remained the fundamental driver of economic growth, explaining that industrial expansion created employment, increased household incomes, strengthened government revenue and stimulated economic activities across different sectors.
“What increases Gross Domestic Product is fundamentally investment,” he said.
The commissioner explained that the establishment of manufacturing companies in Ogun State had strengthened local value chains by encouraging the sourcing and processing of raw materials within the state, thereby reducing transportation and production costs.
He said the government’s development agenda, anchored on the ISEYA framework, covering infrastructure, social welfare and well-being, education and human capital development, youth empowerment, and agriculture and food security, had continued to drive economic expansion.
According to him, Ogun State’s industrial growth was being supported by deliberate investments in road infrastructure, electricity, security and industrial clusters.
He disclosed that the state government had constructed and rehabilitated more than 1,700 kilometres of roads under the Abiodun administration, adding that the projects were spread across the state’s major geographical divisions.
He maintained that improved road networks had reduced logistical difficulties for manufacturers and made the state more attractive to investors.
“Today, when you look at the industrial corridors, particularly along the Sagamu interchange to Abeokuta, you see the proliferation of factories and industries. There can only be one reason why investors are trooping into Ogun State,” he said.
The commissioner identified security as another major factor influencing investors’ decisions, saying the state government had supported security agencies with technology, logistics, infrastructure and financial assistance to combat kidnapping and other security threats.
He also disclosed that more than 500 companies had been connected to independent power arrangements through partnerships with private sector operators, providing them with relatively stable electricity outside the national grid.
Okubadejo explained that the arrangement had helped reduce the cost of production for businesses, particularly manufacturers whose operations depend heavily on uninterrupted power supply.
He further highlighted the government’s industrial cluster initiative, which he said was designed to provide shared facilities such as electricity, water, security, fire management and waste disposal.
According to him, the clusters include the Ijebu industrial corridor, the Remo cluster around the Gateway International Airport and its proposed aerotropolis, the Abeokuta corridor and the Egba industrial cluster.
He said the initiative would enable companies to access essential infrastructure without independently bearing the full cost of providing such facilities.
The commissioner also disclosed that the state had recently witnessed a major investment commitment with the groundbreaking of the Lead Group’s first industrial park, valued at $1.8bn.
On the Gateway International Airport, Okunadejo explained that the Abiodun administration conceived the project as an aerotropolis, an airport city designed to stimulate commercial and industrial activities beyond conventional passenger and cargo operations.
He said the airport’s 4.1-kilometre runway was designed to accommodate large cargo aircraft, adding that the facility also had the capacity to support passenger operations.
He noted that the airport’s accessibility through several road networks, including the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Sagamu-Benin Expressway and Abeokuta-Ikenne corridor, gave it an advantage over airports with limited road access.
The commissioner further disclosed that the state government had acquired two Bombardier CRJ900 aircraft, with a 90-passenger capacity, as part of efforts to improve the airport’s commercial operations.
He said one of the aircrafts had been deployed for operations between Gateway Airport and Abuja, while another was being managed by ValueJet as part of its fleet.
Okubadejo also identified housing development as an important component of the state’s economic strategy, estimating that between 6,000 and 7,000 housing units had been delivered under the present administration.
He said the housing projects, located in different parts of the state, were designed to accommodate both low- and high-income earners and encourage more people to live and work in Ogun State.
On land administration, he said the introduction of the Ogun State Land Administration and Revenue Management System (OLARMS) had made land documentation and the issuance of Certificates of Occupancy more efficient through digital processes.
He acknowledged that the system had experienced initial challenges but expressed confidence that the difficulties were gradually being addressed.
The commissioner also said the state was encouraged by improvements in major national economic indicators, including foreign exchange stability, foreign reserves and investment activities, while acknowledging that economic reforms required time and continued sacrifices.
He maintained that the state remained committed to strengthening its position as Nigeria’s preferred investment destination and industrial hub.
The meeting provided shareholders with an opportunity to assess the bank’s financial position, review its performance and consider strategies for expanding its operations in Nigeria’s mortgage banking sector.
Durojaye expressed appreciation to the shareholders, the Ogun State Government and other stakeholders for their continued confidence in the institution, assuring them of the board’s commitment to sustaining its growth and improving profitability.
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