WHY LAND REFORM IS IMPORTANT

There is need to review the Land Use Act

Despite a recent promise by the Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Ahmed Dangiwa, that the Federal Government was set to overhaul its land administration system to unlock an estimated $300 billion in dead capital, there is nothing to suggest a serious commitment to this important idea.  Nigeria’s poor ranking on the World Bank’s Registering Property Index, according to Dangiwa, was a direct result of outdated and cumbersome land processes, excessive bureaucracy and inconsistent regulations that discourage investment.

All over the world, land is such a vital resource that it determines the wealth of nations, individuals, and society, influences the balance of power and how resources are used and managed. The contest for land has also led to wars and age-long conflict that government must be involved in its management. In Nigeria, the law that government uses to manage land resources is the Land Use Act of 1978. This 48-year-old legislation was passed under the military and has not been reviewed since then. The last time a president showed significant interest in land reforms was under the late Umaru Musa Yar’Adua but he couldn’t complete the process before he died.

 

By the law currently in operation, the power over the land within the territory of a state is vested in the governor. While we know that the governors have assumed their full powers based on the vesting done by this law, there is little to show they have managed the powers as trustees nor have allocated land in a fair and transparent manner. That Nigeria is usually ranked low among other countries on the World Bank Ease of Doing Business index in terms of ease of registering properties is a reflection on land management. Meanwhile, States such as Kaduna, Lagos, Nasarawa and Kano have tried to carry out reforms of the land system with some minimal results.  

Nigeria needs land reforms that will improve land administration, create an equitable system that will lead to affordability, improved land titling and property registration procedure and reduce corruption in the Land Market. According to PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), about $900 billion, which is twice Nigeria’s GDP, can flow into the economy if we get our land reforms right. The PwC report claims that the real estate market alone holds between $230 billion and $750 billions of value that is locked up. To do this, there is an urgent need to review the Land Use Act. The enormous power that the governor enjoys needs to be reduced, and an accountability framework created to ensure the Governor continues to function as a real trustee.


Land reforms require a lot of thinking, a definition of clear objectives, the creation of the right instruments, the development of effective administrative mechanism, improved governance, and processes to drive inclusion, transparency, and efficient customer service. Sustained land reforms cannot be based on keen-jerk reactions or attempts to become popular. The urgent task to unlock the wealth in our land resources cannot be delayed. Fortunately, the work done by the Presidential Technical Committee on Land Reforms, led by a renowned expert, Peter Adeniyi, is still in place. The draft bill may only need to be reviewed. 

According to the World Bank, land reform involves changing the institutional structure. This includes a review of how access to land is regulated, property rights are defined, and ownership conflicts are resolved. Effective land reforms will improve livelihoods, maximise the land market, and create more efficient systems. We hope the current administration of President Bola Tinubu will make land reform a priority this year.