Estate surveyors explore solid minerals, environmental valuation

To build capacity, improve knowledge and educate estate surveyors on emerging trends in the sector, the Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (NIESV), has delved into solid minerals and environmental valuation.

The Environmental Valuation Business Division held a two-day training in Lagos to acquaint valuers with the field. The Chairman of the division, Dr. Austin Otegbulu said that it is unfortunate that environmental valuation is not contained in the curriculum of higher institution offering estate management.

“There is need to be proactive before we are over-taken by intruders, “we must lay claim to it, equipped with knowledge, skill and capacity to perform and deliver quality services.“Some of our members, who have delved into this area of practice have been accused of incompetence by institutional client. We want to expand our scope of services with knowledge and give quality services to our client.”

Explaining the concept of environmental valuation Otegbulu noted that the total economic value that goes with the asset including the consumer and producer surpluses are considered. “Most times the normal valuation undervalues the overall assets, for instance for forest products, we have non-timber forest products. What we have under valuation is to value timber itself and the value of non-timber products is higher than the value of timber itself which is really neglected in valuation.”

Otegbulu added that by law, only estate surveyors and valuers are empowered to value assets and this is a new area waiting to be explored with few people having capacity to handle. “Other countries like Kenya, Tanzania include natural assets in their national accounting which is not done in Nigeria and when this starts here, the work will be enormous and so it important to empower our people ahead.”

While analysing the importance of valuating environment rightly, associate professor of Estate Management Rivers state University and Consultant Estate Surveyor and Valuer Dr. Victor Akujuru said that a scientist examined the impact of an oil spill on an environment and said that in 30 years time the environment will restore to its pre-pollution state.

“The estate valuers who are aware that a site has been polluted, must in their valuation build in the impact of that pollution in their valuation; it should not be a flat rate, usually the values will drop but when remediation starts the values will increase even though it may never get back to its pre-pollution state but the values improve. So the valuer needs to differentiate the three broad stages of value change when pollution occurs.”

Meanwhile, plans are afoot to train estate surveyors in field of solid minerals valuation.The programme by the Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers Plant and Equipment Valuation Faculty. This followed the realisation of the need to broaden knowledge of members to meet with international best practice and also bring clarity and transparency to investors in the solid minerals industry.

A committee to execute the workshops and training programmes was inaugurated last week in Lagos to perfect strategies for the event. The institution said the valuers, being essential partners in any financial risk analysis, need to be aware of their roles in the valuation classes of assets such as precious stones and gems.

NIESV President, Roland Abonta, said the workshops and training programmes for members of the faculty as well as other stakeholders, were preparatory to making impact in the solid minerals development of the country in terms of valuation.He said, “It is going to be a multidisciplinary committee because we realised that in the field of mining, many professions are involved like the engineers and the geologists.

“In the past there were some drags from the Nigerian Society of Engineers, on plants and equipment valuation but a court settled that though there may be technical issues but the issue of assessment and putting monetary value on equipment and plants belong to the NIESV and we know we may need technical input from engineers but they are not competent to put value on any plant or machinery. There could be collaboration to the extent of their expertise.”

According to him, the institution expects a lot from the training, to help the Federal Government get more value from the mining industry.“A lot of activities are involved in mining. Apart from the equipment and facilities for mining, placing value on the content mined in terms of what quantity and for how long it will serve, will help the economy in terms of planning and the nation can know what the reserve or its values are,” he said.

The faculty Secretary, Mrs Bola Olawuyi, explained thatthe institution would work in conjunction with the Federal Ministry of Mines and Steel Development; the Presidential Task force on Solid Minerals Development;  the Estate Surveyors Registration Board of Nigeria;  Bank of Industry; Association of Miners of Nigeria; NEXIM bank and the Federal University of Technology Minna, Niger state on the workshops.