No country can develop without proper land documentation-Falana

By Mashe Umaru Gwamna

Human rights advocate and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Mr. Femi Falana, has stated that No country can develop without proper land documentation.

This was contained in a statement signed and issued by Director Press and Public Relations Badamasi S Haiba.

He made this known yesterday at the ongoing 30th Conference of Directors of Lands, holding in Kano.

While urging government to ensure that the Land4Growth remains inclusive, accessible and free of financial burden for citizens, especially vulnerable households in rural communities.

Falana also commended the Federal Government for the implementation of the Nigeria Land Titling, Registration and Documentation Programme (a.k.a Land4Growth).

He described it as a bold, progressive and transformative intervention that will unlock economic growth, enforce property rights and protect citizens from exploitation.

Falana in his paper
presentation on the reform of Nigeria’s land administration system, applauded the Federal Ministry of Housing and Urban Development for championing a programme that targets increasing Nigeria’s formal land registration from less than 10% to 50% within a decade, in partnership with the World Bank.

According to him, a properly executed nationwide land titling programme will mark the beginning of a new wealth creation era for millions of Nigerians and put an end to decades of informal transactions, land disputes, corruption and the harassment of citizens by illicit land operators and omo onile cartels.

He stressed that over 90% of Nigerian land assets currently exist as ‘dead capital’, a condition that undermines mortgage access, hinders housing development, and limits economic participation.

Accordingly, he called for a financing structure that places the responsibility of titling costs squarely on the government while ensuring legal enforcement and transparency at every stage of implementation.

He further noted that the success of the programme must go beyond digitization and urban pilots, warning that without parallel reforms in enforcement of the Land Use Act and protection of customary rights, digitization could simply “modernize the old inequities.”

He also advocated a stronger linkage between land titling and financing mechanisms under existing laws like the National Housing Fund and Federal Mortgage Bank frameworks, so that formal titles translate directly into real access to mortgages and mass housing delivery.

The Senior Advocate, concluded with a strong call to action to stakeholders across government institutions, financial institutions, developers, civil society and youth to treat the Land4Growth as a national development imperative, not just a technical exercise.

He urged stakeholders to seize the moment to restructure Nigeria’s land sector into a transparent, equitable and economically empowering system for all citizens.