Land Administration and Management using Geographical Information System (GIS): A Case Study of Bethel Estate, Enugu State, Nigeria

Abstract

Land information is prime requisite for making decisions related to land investment, development and management. Information reduces uncertainty by helping to identify and analyze problems. Strategies to overcome them may then be prepared and implemented. The value of the information and the effectiveness of the decision making process are directly related to the quality of the information and the manner in which it is made available. Land records are very important because these form the basis for assignment and settlement of land titles, these must stand against legal scrutiny. It helps to create more reliable and all-embracing tool for decision- making about land especially with the recent Land reform efforts of the Federal Government of Nigeria. The paper presents an overall framework for understanding the role of the multi-purpose cadastre in facilitating an efficient land market as well as an effective land-use administration. Bethel estate located in Enugu state is used as a case study. The procedure include: data collection, scanning, geo-referencing and digitizing. The attributes of features were created in the database, results were obtained by querying the database and finally the results were analyzed and presented.

Keywords: Land Reforms, Multi-purpose Cadastre, geo-referencing, Land-use administration, Land Information.