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ABSTRACT
Strong private proof of ownership and property rights to land are recognised as fundamental to the protection of individuals’ proof of ownership and property rights within a country’s legal system. Legal reform of inadequate and inefficient proof of ownership and property rights laws is therefore essential. My thesis aims to address the lack of legal reform of the laws governing proof of ownership and property rights to land in Nigeria. It does this by critically examining the Land Use Act, set up as the primary body of legislation governing proof of ownership and property rights in Nigeria.
The thesis seeks to offer meaningful insights by proposing an institutional analysis of the limitations to reform of existing laws governing proof of ownership and property rights to land in Nigeria. Several approaches of new institutionalism are explored in analysing identified constraints which exist within formal and informal institutions.
Explanations of the absence of legal reform are addressed through themes examining the formal and informal institutional structures which limit reform. Analyses of institutional structures highlight the significant role played by institutions in the establishment and development of proof of ownership and property rights laws in Nigeria. An in-depth look at Nigerian private property laws and legally recognised interests on land exposes fundamental limitations to private proof of ownership and property rights protection of individuals within the Nigerian state. The thesis provides valuable insights and addresses institutional limitations through consideration of strategies which would enable and assist legal reform of Nigeria’s proof of ownership and property rights laws. The study concludes by exploring three aspects. First, it offers reform proposals and analyses the functionality of the proposed reform suggestions. Second, it highlights principles of policy-making redesign within formal institutions. Finally, it offers strategies to assist reform within informal institutional structures.
