Yobe State Governor Mai Mala Buni said he granted approval for the development of a 25-year Damaturu master plan over effective land administration and management.
The governor made this known while inaugurating a digital portal on Land administration and management for the Yobe State Geographic Information Service (YOGIS) and a one-step digital platform for accessing digitised data about land in Damaturu.
The governor said the production of the master plan was part of the state government’s urban development programme geared towards enhancing land administration across the state.
“I have approved the contract for the production of a 25 year Damaturu master plan and I am pleased to inform you that the team of experts engaged by the state government are ready to commence work.
“Upon completion of the Damaturu master plan, we would also produce a master plan for the other major urban areas across the state namely, Potiskum, Nguru, Gashua, Geidam and Buni-Yadi.
“To give our citizens opportunities and prospects, YOGIS should design a project to produce titles to our traditional settlements across the urban areas in the state. The settlers will pay some amount to obtain their certificate of occupation.
“With this, the inhabitants of these additional settlements will be able to use their titles as a collateral to access services.”
Governor Buni directed that all land vendors must register with the YOGIS so as to curb land grabbing, racketeering and scams across the state.
The director general of YOGIS, Dr Abdullahi Gana has while speaking said from April 2021 to date, the agency had generated and remitted N179 million from processing fees.
He also stated that the agency had secured a grant to the tune of N1.3 billion from the World Bank project.
“YOGIS has helped in reducing land disputes and cribs more than half since its creation.”
