The Federal Government has been urged to leverage on effective land management practices to drive growth and attract investment into the real estate industry.
According to the Group Managing Director, Copen Group, Dr Ugochukwu Chime, clear land tenure systems and robust management practices are necessary to attract investment, stimulate real estate markets, and foster economic prosperity.
When land rights are well-defined and protected, the COPEN boss said would create a stable environment for economic activities, leading to increased investment and development opportunities.
Speaking on “Effective Land Management as the key to Socio-Economic Development of Nigeria” at the just concluded African International Housing Show, he explained that a strong legal framework and effective policy implementation are essential components of efficient land management.
“Strengthening these frameworks ensures that land is managed according to established regulations, curbing illegal land grabs and supporting equitable development. Robust policies and their diligent enforcement are necessary to achieve sustainable and orderly land use,’ Chime said.
He emphasised that effective land management is of paramount importance in Nigeria due to a confluence of pressing factors that impacted the nation’s sustainable development and overall stability.
These factors, ranging from demographic changes to environmental challenges, he said have necessitated a comprehensive approach to managing land resources effectively.
Chime pointed out that agriculture remains a cornerstone of Nigeria’s economy, adding that efficient land management is crucial for optimising agricultural productivity.
According to him, proper management practices could enhance land use for farming, increase crop yields, and reduce conflicts over land ownership between farmers and headers.
He said: ”Environmental sustainability is another critical concern that underscores the need for efficient land management. Nigeria faces significant environmental challenges, including deforestation, soil degradation, and desertification. Effective land management strategies are essential to combat these issues, protect the country’s diverse ecosystems, and ensure that natural resources are used responsibly.”
In terms of economic development, he noted that land is a vital asset to drive growth.
Justifying the need for effective land management in Nigeria, he said the rate of urbanisation in the country has been alarming, pointing out the five of the 30 largest urban settlements on the African continent are in Nigeria.
By 2037, he said that the urban population would have doubled and that the annual increase in housing demand for Lagos, Ibadan, and Kano is by 20 percent.
According to him, 700,000 housing units must be built every year to keep up with the growing urban population.
“Nigeria’s population, as of 2023, is approximately 223 million and growing at an annual rate of 2.6 percent,” he said.
He recalled that the 1978 Land Use Act, which vested all land in urban areas in the hands of state governors to hold in trust for the people, was enacted to streamline land administration and curb land speculation.
He pointed out that 46 years after, the law governing land use in Nigeria has not been amended
“There are 38 land administering entities (36 States, FCT and Federal Lands). Each entity is empowered to determine the policies and practices for managing land and physical development.
There is a diagonal level of efficiency amongst them, from those still operating analogue mode of land information storage and retrieval to those who are going digital,” he said.
According to him, less than six percent of the land resources were documented and registered with the various deeds registries, while less than 10 percent of the land parcels were covered with effective and comparable cadastral origin and orientation.
Due to these inefficiencies in land management and administration, he said: ”Nigeria has over $300bn in dead capital, which is over 60 percent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
“Various efforts to amend the LUA 1978 has failed due to fears and concerns about its impact on various interests.
“Many laudable programs and projects in various sectors like agriculture and housing have severely and adversely affected and/or thwarted by the very outdated, inefficient and opaque administration in Nigeria.
‘There are no established formal markets in Nigeria wherein land is traded both as an asset and a securitized commodity.’”
Besides, he said the current land market lacked structure and highly fragmented with various players trading “outside government oversight and regulation which creates room for massive land disputes.”
“The GDP of the country and sub-nationals have been severely constrained and capped by current land administration policies and practices,” he said.
On previous efforts, Chime said that over the years, various professionals and organisations have identified and made robust presentations on the huge socio economic challenges, aspects of the LUA policies and practices pose to the nation’s development aspirations.
He listed lack of political will amongst the leadership at national and subnational; vicissitudes of changes in the key main drivers, and the attendant loss of institutional memory;weak institutional framework at the state level and huge initial cost needed to embark on the establishment of eGIS and other required resources as factors responsible for the failure of the various attempts at ensuring efficient land management policies and practices in Nigeria.
Others are lack of knowledge of the huge negative impact of the current status on the socio-economic development; and corruption and resistance to change by beneficiaries of the current status of land management.
In actualising the team objective, Chime said the team has outlined some operational and administrative level in driving for the establishment of a national mortgage register for titles that can be verified in terms of the coordinates.
Others, he said include: ”Incentivising and prompting the state government to make necessary administrative and operational changes.
“Driving for the domestication of the Model Mortgage and Foreclosure Law (MMFL) across the states of the Federation and the FCT.
Improve and standardize the Land Use Act. (constitutional and legal changes)
Making changes to certain areas in Policy without necessarily changing the law (Land Use Act).
Getting the private sector traditional institutions, professional bodies & civic societies involved in shaping the land management system.”
Chime said his team is considering five areas (people, data, hardware, software, support) under consideration for improving land management through Enterprise Geographic Information (e-GIS)
According to him, this would lead to the creation of the National Lands Commission that integrates and harmonizes of all the land management efforts of government irrespective of the ministries, department and agencies that are handing it.
“Creation of massive employment in the local economy and the resultant multiplier effects in the economy; creation of a platform for a broad national consultation process for participation and stakeholder management in the land administration process, and development of a seamless land acquisition process which has been the basis for massive conflict issues across the nation as well as development of a more acceptable approach to payment of compensation rates, having cognizance of stakeholder concerns,” he said.
According to him, it will lead to the establishment of a comprehensive system land registration and documentation system to record land transactions and ownership nationwide;digitalisation and real-time access to land nationwide: and addressing the complexities of customary land rights, recognizing and formalizing them where appropriate.
He said it would make states in the federation a destination of choice for investment and thus enhance the ease of doing business index; and also lead to ultimate amendment of the land use act, and the adoption and domestication of the National Building Code.
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