Kaduna state has been recognised as a pioneer in land administration and chosen as one of the pilot states for the Nigeria Land Titling, Registration and Documentation Programme (NLTRDP).

The Deputy Governor, Dr Hadiza Balarabe, disclosed this when representatives Federal Ministry of Housing and Urban Development as well as those from the World Bank paid her a courtesy visit at Sir Kashim Ibrahim House on Monday.

Dr Balarabe commended Governor Uba Sani for upgrading the Kaduna Geographic Information Service (KADGIS), which enabled the federal government to select the state as one of the sub-nationals from which others will learn.

The deputy governor noted that although Kaduna has made significant progress in digitalising its land administration processes, it still needs additional support to accelerate ongoing reforms.

Dr Balarabe also promised that the state will collaborate with the federal government and the World Bank to ensure the success of NLTRDP.

Speaking during the courtesy visit, the Director-General of KADGIS, Dr Bashir Garba Ibrahim, commended the governor for opening new revenue lines, such as sectional titling, which currently operates only in the Federal Capital Territory and Lagos state.

The director-general also listed Shop Registration and the Farm Lease Programme as revenue lines the governor introduced.

According to him, Kaduna is regularising over 100 undocumented layouts to enable people to register their houses.

“So, with all these breakthrough, the World Bank also needs to intervene to help Kaduna state upgrade its system and make sure that all these activities are done seamlessly.

“We need an alternative Land Administration Software because the one we are currently using cannot accommodate the number of customers and activities that we want to embark upon

“We need also to create a feedback mechanism through the Land Administration Software, where people can access their bills online, instead of coming to KADGIS physically to collect them; they can easily download their bills and make payments and also download their receipts online,” he said.

Dr Ibrahim also said that KADGIS has opened a unit that handles federal land titles, for those who want to register them in the state, adding that this will stop the issue of multiple claims.

Earlier, the delegation, led by Alabi Collins, the Director of Lands and Urban Development, said the World Bank would support the proposed NLTRDP.
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‎According to him, the programme aims to reform Nigeria’s land governance and administration system by promoting efficient land titling and registration processes.

Mr Collins said that the goal was to unlock the economic value of land assets for government, businesses and individuals through improved documentation and transparency.