By YINKA KOLAWOLE

Since formal land registration began in Nigeria in 1863, not more than 2.5 per cent of the land in the whole country has been registered.

Chairman, Presidential Technical Committee on Land Reform (PTCLR), Prof. Peter Adeniyi, made the remark during a dialogue on “Legitimising Systematic Land Titling and Registration in Nigeria”, held in Abuja, recently.

Meanwhile participants at the forum called on state and federal governments to review the process of land titling, to allow for proper framing and execution of land policy. The gathering which was made up of experts on land management, included former chairman of PTCLR, Prof. Akin Mabogunje; Minister of Lands, Housing and Urban Development, Ms Amal Pepple, Chairman, Senate Committee on Lands and Housing, Senator Bukar Abba Ibrahim, President, International Federation of Surveyors (FIG), Mr. CheeHai Teo, who delivered the keynote address; and members of professional bodies.

They noted that what is obtainable in many states of the federation, as far as land documentation is concerned, is not business friendly and slowing down the pace of the nation’s development. The participants maintained that in order to harness most of the benefits derivable from land, it must be transformed into capital asset through effective titling and registration in order to create secure tenure and bestow property rights on the owner. They agreed that conventional means of administering land in Nigeria have failed to deliver the desired result with respect to secure tenure and rights.

In his remarks, Adeniyi noted that the abysmal land titling situation in the country prompted the federal government in April 2009 to inaugurate a technical committee to collaborate with states and local governments on a comprehensive cadastral mapping nationwide and to determine ‘possessory’ rights of individuals, using the best practices and most appropriate technology.

He asserted that without titling, land loses its ability to empower the owner. “Land is something that if you have and you don’t have title on it, you will not be able to use it to empower yourself. But if you have title for it, you can use it as collateral, you can sell part of it to develop part of it or use it personally.

What is happening today in the country, with regards to people’s inability to empower themselves, is because when people don’t have title, they cannot use it to raise fund to develop themselves, but when you title your land, you are likely to engage other people because you have the resources,” he said.

The PTCLR chairman said that the main goal of the dialogue was to identify and address legal issues and other constraints that may arise in, or impede the process of implementing the systematic land titling and registration in Nigeria within the context of the Land Use Act and to proffer practical and pragmatic solutions that will legitimize the process and the outcome.

Also speaking at the forum, Teo reiterated that land as a scarce resource involves rights as well as responsibilities, noting that when poorly managed, land becomes contentious and could lead to disputes, conflicts and degradation, all of which are pointers to poverty and underdevelopment.  On the other hand, he declared that tenure security could among other benefits, boost food security.