The Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Ahmed Dangiwa, says over 90 per cent of land in Nigeria remains unregistered.
He said this has resulted in over 300 billion dollars in loss due to longstanding land registration challenges.
Dangiwa disclosed this on Tuesday at the National Land Registration and Documentation Programme (NLRDP), a National Workshop, organised by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development in Abuja.
He said that since the inception of formal land registration in Nigeria in 1883, the processes have been conducted under a non-compulsory sporadic system.
“This process was slow, cumbersome, opaque and expensive for the average landowner.
“It is not surprising that less than 10 per cent of the entire land in the country was registered in 140 years,’’ he said.
According to him, this has made it impossible for landowners to leverage their assets for economic purposes.
“Nigeria has faced longstanding challenges in land governance including: lack of a systematic, credible, and uncontested framework to identify property ownership, interests, and locations.
“The cumbersome and inefficient property registration process has resulted in less than 10 per cent of land in Nigeria been registered under the current sporadic system.
“Other challenges include the absence of authoritative data to support effective land administration, limited access to available land records, the existence of the Land Use Act of 1978 (now Cap 2004).
“This was without the necessary regulations to facilitate its implementation,’’ he said.
Dangiwa added that the absence of a national institution to advise the Council of State, which was empowered to make regulations for the Act.
He said inadequate data and information for effective land valuation in both urban and rural areas was also a major challenge.
Dangiwa said addressing this issue was not just about administrative efficiency but a critical step towards economic transformation.
According to him, this workshop marks a significant step in the current administration’s efforts to implement long-overdue reforms.
He said that these reforms were essential to unlocking the immense potential of Nigeria’s landed assets for economic growth, wealth creation, poverty reduction, capital accumulation, and national development.
This, he said, could be through the National Land Registration, Documentation, and Titling Programme.
He said the ministry planned to develop and inaugurate a National Digital Land Information System (NDLIS) to modernise land administration.
According to him, this will centralise and digitise land records, reducing bureaucracy and corruption in land transactions.
Dangiwa added that the ministry sought to increase the formalisation of land transactions from less than 10 per cent to over 50 per cent in the next 10 years
He said the ministry remained committed to expanding the formal economy, enhancing the capacity to track and regulate land markets, and improving access to credit for citizens and businesses.
Sen. Aminu Tambuwal, Chairman, Senate Committee on Lands, Housing and Urban Development, said land was one of the most critical assets of any nation.
According toTambuwal, Nigeria continues to face persistent hurdles in land administration and accreditation, including bureaucratic inefficiencies, lack of transparency, and recurring disputes.
He reiterated the Senate Committee’s commitment to providing robust legislative support to ensure the success of the programme.
”These include: strengthening land administration frameworks, conducting oversight to ensure accountability, providing sustainable funding for critical initiatives, and collaborating with state assemblies to harmonise land-related centres,” he said.
Also speaking, Ademorin Kuye, Chairman, House Committee on Public Assets, said Nigeria’s land assets were unaccounted for and the economic implication was that undocumented land could not serve as collateral for loans and investment.
”Poorly governed land leads to illegal encroachment, deforestation, unsustainable agricultural practices.
“The legal challenges are the ambiguities in land titles which force endless litigation, draining resources, and undermining trust in our judicial system.
“It is against this background that this land registration and documentation programme emerges as a beacon of hope, a bold step towards addressing these systemic challenges through innovation, collaboration, and digitisation.”
Also speaking, Dr Ndiamé Diop, the World Bank’s Country Director, who was represented by Dr Michael Ilesanmi, said the National Land Registration and Documentation Programme aligned with the vision of the World Bank to eradicate poverty.
“We are proud to partner with the Government of Nigeria on a number of development initiatives; this particular programme will help unlock the potential of the nation at national and sub-national level for investors.”
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