The Ministry of Housing and Urban Development and the World Bank Group have resolved to collaborate on addressing Nigeria’s unregistered land challenge, aiming to register 90% of unregistered land within five years. This initiative seeks to make Nigeria’s vast land assets more economically viable and unlock over $300 billion in dead capital tied up in undocumented land.
The partnership, announced during a visit by World Bank Vice President Guangzhe Chen to Minister Ahmed Dangiwa, will focus on the National Land Registration and Titling Programme, in collaboration with state governments. The programme aims to:
– Register, document, and title all land parcels within five years
– Develop and launch a National Digital Land Information System (NDLIS)
– Increase formalization of land transactions from less than 10% to over 50% in 10 years
– Train and deploy technically competent land registration officers nationwide
The minister emphasized the importance of land registration and titling in opening up revenue sources for states, boosting income through ground rent, Certificates of Occupancy, and taxes from increased real estate investments. These funds can be used to provide urban services, minimizing the impact of climate change across cities in Nigeria.
The partnership will also focus on urban liveability, implementation of the National Urban Development Policy, and addressing systemic barriers in the housing value chain to enhance private, affordable housing investments.
The World Bank Vice President emphasized the bank’s commitment to supporting Nigeria in land administration, affordable housing, sustainable financing mechanisms, and urban resilience, among other areas.
