…Unveils first state building code

Property owners who have encroached on road setbacks along major roads and highways in Ogun State should brace for strict action, as the state government moves to enforce compliance and clamp down on unauthorized developments.

Commissioner for Physical Planning and urban development, Tpl Tunji Odunlami, who disclosed this yesterday at a press conference in Abeokuta, said that any structures illegally built on road setbacks or along highways would be demolished, with their owners facing prosecution.
Odunlami raised concern over the increased structures constructed on road setbacks stressing that such development posed risk to public safety and urban order and insisted that the government would not take it lightly with trespassers.

” Violators risk penalties including demolition and prosecution” he noted.
In a related move, the state government has unveiled new planning regulations and introduced its first building and construction code, aiming to support safer and more sustainable urban development.
Odunlami hailed the approval of the Ogun State Building and Construction Code 2025 as a significant milestone, emphasizing that it marks the first instance of a Nigerian state implementing a building code based on the national framework.

He noted that the new regulations are intended to reinforce planning systems and promote organized, safe, and environmentally sustainable development throughout the state.
The commissioner explained that the reforms stem from a wider overhaul of the ministry over the past seven years, during which it was reorganized into three specialized agencies responsible for overseeing physical planning and development.

He revealed that the restructuring was supported by legislation, notably the Ogun State Urban and Regional Planning and Development Law 2022, along with a range of regulations addressing planning permits, slum renewal, building production management, outdoor infrastructure, and land subdivision.
Odunlami noted that the revised 2025 regulations, alongside the newly introduced building code, place Ogun at the forefront of planning reforms, especially as it responds to the state’s rapid urbanisation and economic growth.