Land Tenure System In Nigeria – Everything You Need To Know

Land Tenure System In Nigeria – Everything You Need To Know. Get Informed On Land Tenure System. Check This Post Now.

Land Tenure System

Are you looking for information on land tenure system in Nigeria? Then you have come to the right platform for this information. In this article we would be discussing on land tenure system in Nigeria and giving you everything you need to know in general.

Firstly, we need to understand what land tenure system in Nigeria really entails and the meaning.

What Is Land Tenure System?

Land tenure system in Nigeria is a global subject matter and with it, has come the need to discuss how to go about owning a land in Nigeria. This article brightens you on how to know the various forms of land ownership behavior in the country.

Types Of Land Tenure System In Nigeria

There are also different types of land tenure system in Nigeria and there are about seven of them. We would be discussing shortly on these types of land tenure system in Nigeria.

1. Free Hold Tenure System

People who subscribe to free hold tenure system pay a predetermined amount for a right to own a plot of land. After obtaining this land, they can use it as collateral for a loan. Larger the land, the greater the payment. The land is surveyed and ended by signing backup documents.

2. Inheritance Tenure System

On this type of land tenure system, land ownership is passed on to the next of kin. Therefore, lands are provided for both born and unborn children. Some villages transfer lands to the children upon their guardians death.

3. Communal Land Tenure System

The community becomes the main leader of the land under this system. The head of the community decides the sharing ratio. Farming on a large scale is often encouraged, in this system, a single individual cannot claim full ownership of the land or even use it as security.

4. Leasehold Tenure System

In this system, an individual is granted temporary ownership of a plot of land by some form of title from the owner. During the lease period, an individual may have temporary access to the the land, but can never use this land as collateral for loans.

5. Gift Tenure System

Under the gift tenure system, when a landowner gives up his or her land voluntarily and without been forced by anyone. Since the new owner now owns the full and permanent title to the land, he can use it as collateral for loan or anything.

6. Rent Tenure System

In this type of land tenure system, the tenants pay a rent amount to the landlord for a period of time that they use the property. Depending on the agreement and terms, the rent period can always be one or two years.

7. Tenants At Government Will

According to this system, land is leased by the Nigerian government to farmers for cultivating. The land is mostly always used for large-scale farming and crop production. The land is relatively inexpensive to get.

Advantages Of Land Tenure System

There are numerous advantages of land tenure system and in this article, we would be pointing out few of these advantages.

This system allows individuals use and manage land and natural resources. It involves two main parties: the government whose duty is to monitor and regulate the use of land, and private individuals who own and cultivate the land and enjoy its fruits and products.
It is supported by “Legal acts” and these legal acts provided for all issues at or about lands in Nigeria, its ownership, descriptions, partition use, inheritance, mortgages purchase and selling transfer, and so on.
It improves better order and smooth running of society and the community at large.
It reflects as a system for regulating the legal relationship between individuals and communities with full respect to land use.
This land tenure systems are very crucial for supplementing the existing legal framework, which guarantees secure tenure rights to individuals.

Land Tenure System In Agriculture

There are also effects of land tenure system to Agriculture. Unfortunately, the impact of tenure on natural resources allocation and exploitation is often ignored in public land policy. Yet land tenure issues contribute to deforestation, degradation of the environment, lowering of carrying capacities of soils, poaching and extinction of wild biotic resources.

You should also know that there are Six types of land tenure system in Agriculture and they are;

Owner cultivation of small, private lands.
Squatting on public or private lands.
Large estates or latifundia
Feudal tenures with bond and unbound labor
Communal tenures
Smallholder leasing from private landowners.

Land Tenure System Near Lagos

Abuja is the capital and eighth most populous city of Nigeria. It is located in the centre of the country within the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), it is a planned city built in the 1980s based on master plan by Japanese architect “Kenzo Tange”, it replaced Lagos, the country’s most populous city, as the capital on 12 December 1991.

Following the enactment of the Federal Capital Territory Act in February 1976, a definite area was carved of Niger state of Nigeria as the Federal Capital Territory and all lands within the said FCT became vested absolutely in the Federal Government of Nigeria to the exclusion of any other person or authority.

There are at least three basic implication of vesting ownership of lands in the area now known as the FCt in the Federal Government of Nigeria:

There was an immediate expropriation of individual, family, communal or state ownership on 4th February 1976 with the affected person meant to be compensated upon fulfillment of certain pre-conditions under the Act.
The Federal Government assumed exclusive right over all the land as the owner “wholly or solely devoid of any qualification or exception with ownership vesting absolutely in the government of the federation to the exclusion of any other person or authority.
The governance, administration or control of such land became the exclusive responsibility of the government of the federation to the exclusion of any other person or authority.

Control and Management of Land in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

Whereas the Land Use Act excludes all lands “whether developed or undeveloped” vested in the Federal Government from the ambit control and management of the state Governor, Section 51(2) of the Act provides that “the power of a Governor under the Act shall, in respect of land Comprised in the FCT Abuja be exercisable by the president or any minister designated by him in that behalf and references in (the) Act to Governor shall be construed accordingly”.

Conclusion

Land tenure is a system of laws that determine who is considered to be the owner of land in a given jurisdiction. Nigeria as a federal system of government and land tenure laws are generally made by the various states. In this article, we have conducted few research on land tenure in Nigeria and our findings were elaborated in this article so that it will contribute to the numerous discussion about the land tenure system in Nigeria.

See Also: How To Design A House Like An Architect

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What Are The Types Of Land Tenure System Near Lagos?

Freehold tenure system, Inheritance tenure system, Communal land tenure system, Leasehold tenure system, Gift tenure system, Rent tenure system, Tenants at government will.

2. What Are The Four Types Of Land Tenure System?

There are four categories of land tenure system which are; Customary land tenure, private ownership, tenancy and state ownership.

3. State One Disadvantage Of Inheritance Tenure System?

One disadvantage is the misuse and abuse of land and this is because no other party has any influence over the control and use of land.

4. What Are The 5 Types Of Land?

There are 5 types of land and they are the Coastal lands, Designated areas, Forest lands, Grasslands, Shrublands, and deserts, lastly Water resources.

5. What Are The Features Of Land Tenure System ?

It includes property rights but also use rights of a permanent or a seasonal nature.

6. What Are The Types Of Land Reforms?

There are three types and they include Restitution, redistribution and tenure reform.

7. What Is Land System In Agric?

Land tenure is the relationship that individuals and groups hold with respect to land and land-based resources, such as trees, minerals, pastures and water.

8. Who Is Tenure Holder?

Tenure holder means a person who has acquired from an intermediary the right to hold lands for the purpose of collecting rents or bringing them under cultivation by establishing tenants thereon.

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