Estate surveyors urge Kano government to boost IGR with land resources

Faced with harsh operating environment and need to key into global best practices, estate surveyors have urged Kano State government to develop ‘political will’ towards engaging professionals in land administration.

The immediate past chairman of Lagos State branch of the Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (NIESV), Mr. Dotun Bamigbola, who led this call at the NIESV Kano State branch 45th anniversary and 2022 Mandatory Continuing Professional Development (MCPD) seminar in Kano, urged government to harness vast potentials of the staff in its agencies and consultants to improve on Internally Generated Revenue (IGR).

Bamigbola said there was the need to redefine the State’s Lands Bureau, including Land Services, Land Registry, Land Use and Allocation Committee as top income generation agency of government, with defined processes and revenue coding in tandem with the state’s income revenue service processes for massive improvement of IGR.

Bamigbola challenged the authorities to learn from contemporaries like Lagos and Kaduna States, which are already reaping the benefits of such policy.

According to him, the government should engage registered estate surveyors to run and redefine the process, adding that they will serve as a major catalyst to boost the IGR and ease of doing business, while ensuring the implementation of adequate land resources management and land administration processes.

“Develop a Kano State long-term development master plan like contemporary state. Planning requires the input of all related professionals and economic players. It will create opportunities for investment in land resources, empower the Kano State Urban Development Authority (KNUDA) to do adequate enforcement of the existing Master plan ahead of a new bold development plan for the state,” he said.

He further said every local government should have a valuation office for asset management, land management and records to work with its town planning office, while every local government should have a town planning office to ensure maintenance of the land use pattern, and improve IGR at local level.

Speaking on, ‘Significance of Valuation Standards in Influencing Valuation Practice for Economic Prosperity,’ an estate surveyor and valuer, Kenechukwu Onuora, harped on the critical need to grow awareness, improve processes, and methodologies of executing valuations, nationally, regionally, and internationally for investors and other stakeholders who require valuation advice for investment guidance.

He said: “To help valuers arrive at a more transparent and objective judgment of value in accordance with the basis suitable for each purpose that meets the expectations of their clients as the occasion demands, valuation standards are required. Valuation standards entail ethics, established rules, mandatory rules, procedural rules, quality control principles and a compilation of best practices and guidance.”

The Chairman, NIESV Kano chapter, Abdulaziz Abdulatif, said the institution is determined to improve capacity of members and commended the state government for its support.

He said: “It is a gathering to retrain and retool our members on current challenges, but this year is unique because the Kano branch is also celebrating the 45th years of setting up the branch.”

The Permanent Secretary, Kano State Bureau for Land Management, Dr. Zainab Baraji, represented by Mr. Ibrahim Ishaku, said the government has been working with the institution to achieve development goals and assured of its readiness to involve the chapter, whenever the need arises for overall development.