Civil Engineer, Abdulai Mahama has bemoaned the high cost of building materials on the market.

He said Ghanaians can no longer afford to construct or own houses which has resulted in the country's housing deficit intensifying especially in urban areas.

“You take almost every commodity in the built environment and you can’t do affordable housing because these are the basic materials needed for affordable housing,” he said.

Contributing to discussions on the Super Morning Show on Monday, July 11, on the high cost of living, he lamented the hikes in the prices of iron rods, cement, tiles, and other building materials.

He stated that the prices of these materials have significantly shot up since November 2021 to date.

“44 cedi cement is now selling at 63 cedis, electrical wiring has also gone up by 60% in 3 months,” he said.

He also recalled various instances where he had been to the market and witnessed a significant increase in the prices of construction materials within a short period.

“We signed a contract on Tuesday, a cheque was issued on Wednesday, the cheque was cleared on Friday afternoon, we went to the market to buy 44 tonnes of iron rods and we were awakened by the escalated price of iron rods. The cheque was signed on Tuesday with the price of iron rod shooting from 5,900 to 8,300 from Tuesday to Monday, and you can’t just fathom what’s happening in the system,” he said.

He, thus, called on the government to as a matter of urgency address the current economic crisis.

"Something ought to be done otherwise a lot more of the up-and-coming businesses or middle-income earners can’t put up any structure,” he added.