FG Rakes In N1.2bn From Ground Rents, Others

The Federal Government generated about N1.29bn from land use penal fees, ground rents, premiums, consent, registration and other rates between 2017 and 2019.

This was disclosed by the Director, Lands and Housing Development Department, Federal Ministry of Works and Housing, Mrs Great-Edereka, at a conference on land use reform in Abuja on Tuesday.

The conference was organised for directors of lands in federal and states ministries, departments and agencies.

Great-Edereka explained that land reforms involved the review of subsisting laws, regulations or customs regarding land ownership.

“It may also involve a government-initiated or government-backed land redistribution mechanism through regulatory actions aimed at improving land administration,” she said.

“Nonetheless, any revision of reform of a country’s land laws can be an intensely political process as reforming land policies serves to change relationship within and between communities and states,” Great-Edereka added.

She further observed that “even small-scale land reforms and legal modifications might be subject to intense debate or conflict”.

The conference was aimed at proffering pragmatic solutions to various land conflicts and management challenges in the country.

The Minister of State for Works and Housing, Abubakar Aliyu, said the theme of the conference, ‘Land use reform as conflict resolution mechanism’, was necessitated by prevailing issues in the country.