FG restates commitment to land use reforms, housing data

By Chris Ochayi

The Federal Government reiterated commitment to working with all stakeholders especially the National Assembly, to comprehensively review Nigeria’s Land Use Act for effective administration.

The Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Arc. Ahmed Dangiwa, who disclosed this development, explained further that the initiative was aimed at updating relevant laws guiding housing, access to land, compensation, resettlement, and other land-related matters in line with current realities.

Speaking during a meeting with a World Bank delegation at the ministry’s headquarters in Abuja, the minister observed that key provisions of the Act, including those related to compensation, are obsolete and lack relevance in guiding land-related matters in today’s Nigeria.

According to him, “I have already issued a directive to the Directors of the Department of Land and the Department of Urban and Regional Planning to develop a robust framework for engaging the National Assembly and stakeholders in reviewing the Land Use Act.”

While addressing the issue of the housing deficit, the Minister emphasized the importance of instituting a sustainable framework that generates credible, reliable, and scientific data to guide policy formulation.

The minister said he has already moved beyond simply discussing the problem to taking action by engaging the National Population Commission to leverage the forthcoming population census to obtain baseline scientific data about the state of housing conditions in Nigeria.

The visit by the World Bank team aimed to brief the new ministers on the existing collaboration between the World Bank and the ministry, ongoing projects and programs in the housing, land, urban development, and mortgage finance sectors, as well as discuss avenues for further collaborations.

In his remarks, the leader of the delegation, Michael Ilesanmi, noted that discussions with the ministry on land acquisition, resettlement, and compensation began in 2014, with a deepening of these discussions in 2022.

“Land remains a significant issue in the sector. The Land Use Act faces various challenges, and while realities have changed since its enactment in 1978, not much has changed with the Act. I believe there are opportunities to revise the Act to make it more relevant today,” he said.

He added that the issues surrounding acquisition, resettlement, and compensation are hindering development.

The World Bank team also expressed concern about the inadequate processes and standards used in determining replacement costs and compensation rates, which further exacerbate the challenges in land development.

“You can obtain the legal license, but without the social license, you cannot operate effectively,” Ilesanmi said

While the World Bank offered its commitment to provide technical and knowledge assistance to the ministry when called upon, it called for a systematic approach to dealing with the numerous challenges in the land and housing sector

The minister further assured the team that his leadership is determined to address all the challenges confronting the sector, as well as looking into the foreclosure law, which is essential for the growth of the mortgage industry.

He also noted that the ministry will collaborate with relevant agencies in the area of policy development to ensure urban planning receives adequate attention, adding that the retreat for state officials of urban planning scheduled to take place in October 2023 will be one way to discuss strategies to tackle the challenge of unplanned cities.