By Abubakar Dan Ali
Governor Ahmad Aliyu leaves no one in doubt about his zeal and proven capacity to modernize all aspects of governance in Sokoto state. He had left no stone unturned as he strives to deliver maximum socio-economic benefits to the majority of the residents. The unveiling, on Monday June 23, of the Sokoto digital Geographic Information System (SOGIS) centre, for land data management, by Governor Mai Mala Buni of Yobe State represents yet another significant step in the governor’s pursuit of innovation and efficiency in the conduct of government business.
The fully automated Sokoto Digital Land Information centre, renovated and digitized at the cost of nearly N700 million, is equipped with a state-of-the-art equipment that strategically opens the way for global best practice in land governance. It brings transparency and ease of doing business in Sokoto state real estate sector. A digital GIS-based land mapping portal increases public trust in land administration by allowing easy access to land information, while providing real-time land data for government to make informed decision on land use, infrastructure location and socioeconomic investment.
Sokoto state, under Governor Aliyu, is primed to lead other states in the application of digital tools for effective land governance. While formally commissioning the digital mapping technology on June 23, this year, Governor Aliyu said the upgraded Sokoto GIS centre reaffirmed his commitment to modernization and efficiency in all aspects of governance.
A groundbreaking feature in the new Sokoto state land documentation is the automated certificate of occupancy (C of O) processing, where applicants can obtain official land titles within two weeks. Those who have tried to secure land titles in any part of the country would readily understand the radical nature of the change that Dr Ahmad Aliyu Sokoto has introduced in Sokoto state land administration. In some states, it is easier for the camel to pass through the eye of a sewing needle, than for the governor to issue a certificate of occupancy to an investor, except if the applicant is politically or otherwise elevated.
Another significant feature of the updated digital SOGIS system, according to the governor, is a personalized dashboard on the application portal, which allows applicants to track and monitor the status of their application from submission to issuance. Not only will land titles come fast and easy, measures have also been put in place to ensure everyone gets a durable, water and tamper-proof, fully secure and easily verifiable land document. To this end, each certificate of occupancy is printed with highly durable material, and embedded with digital barcodes to prevent fraud and to facilitate instant authentication when the arises.
Clearly, the significance of digital GIS centre goes beyond land data management.
According to Governor Aliyu Sokoto, it is a gateway to economic transformation of Sokoto state, as it sends clear and alluring signal to investors and development partners that “Sokoto state is ready for sustainable urban development and economic growth”. With the GIS tools, the State will create digital maps with accurate information on land ownership boundaries and type of occupation on every parcel of land across the state, making land registration transparent and efficient. When boundaries are thus clearly mapped and properly delineated, it helps to prevent or minimize land disputes arising from overlapping claims. If a dispute arises, a clear and easily accessible official digital land maps often facilitate quick resolution.
With the current development, Sokoto state has proudly joined the league of states in Nigeria that have adopted digital GIS platforms to enhance land information management. For the government the goal is to proactively manage land resources in the best possible way to ensure optimum benefits to the people, in accordance with the provisions of the Land Use Act (formerly Decree No. 6) of 1978. This law vests all land in the hands of the governor to be held in trust for the people. But the governor is under obligation to manage state land resources for optimum benefit of the citizens as he ensures fair and equitable access to land for productive purposes, efficient and planned use of land for urban development and economic growth, and streamline land administration to prevent disputes.
Over the years, successive state governors have done their best to achieve the laudable objectives of the land use act, but their best have not been good enough. In most states of the federation, equitable access to land remains elusive, even as the government cannot provide a comprehensive and reliable data covering the entire land resources of the state. This is to say that some state authorities cannot readily tell who occupies which portion of land, what the land is being used for at the moment, or what it can be used for in the future. In fact, there still exist large swaths of lands in parts of the country called “ungoverned territories”, meaning that the authorities know nothing about who occupies the spaces, or what goes on in them.
To their credit, a number of state governments and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, have upgraded land governance to the extent of using digital Geographic Information System platforms to map out the entire land in their domain, to generate reliable supporting data for accurate, real-time decision making on land matters.
In the area of urban and regional planning, the digital GIS skills can guide the the state government on where to build houses, cite markets, or other infrastructure, by analyzing terrain, population density, and accessibility. It equally guides planners with spatial accuracy in assigning land for agriculture, residential, commercial, or industrial use.
Skillful use of the installed SOGIS system will, no doubt, enable the state government to track and digitally map out land under cultivation, fallow areas, and monitor land degradation using satellite imagery and field data. In addition, a soil and crop suitability mapping will identify which crops grow best in different areas based on soil, climate, and topography.
Depending on the skill of the operators, a modern GIS centre should assist the government in flood and environmental management. Since Sokoto state has experienced severe flooding in recent years, and eleven of its 23 local government areas were listed among the high-risk flood zones in 2025, GIS modeling can help the flood control agencies to identify flood-prone zones and guide disaster mitigation strategies. Still on environmental management, digital GIS can help monitor deforestation, erosion, desertification, and other environmental changes.
While the government is not going to overburden the residents with taxes and levies, the fact remains that accurate land mapping is usually needed in the assessment of land value for property tax and land-use charges. With digital GIS tools, also, the state government is better equipped to monitor land encroachment to identify illegal occupation or misuse of public land.
On infrastructure and utility mapping, GIS tools will facilitate maps of water lines, roads networks, electricity grids, and telecommunication networks for proper alignment and to improve service delivery, and to locate underserved areas.
Given all the possible impacts of digital Geographic Information System on land and resource management, we can all agree with Governor Aliyu Sokoto when said that his state proudly takes its spot “at the forefront of digital land governance in Nigeria, setting a new benchmark for transparency and efficiency.”
