All land vested in state governors as trustees. Citizens hold land via Certificate of Occupancy (C of O). Constitutionally entrenched — hard to amend.
The Land Use Act is the bedrock of all Nigerian land tenure. It vested all land in the state governors as trustees for the people, replacing the patchwork of customary, freehold and English land law that existed before. Citizens hold land via Certificate of Occupancy (C of O) granted by the governor. The Act is constitutionally entrenched (Section 315 of the 1999 Constitution) — making it require a constitutional amendment rather than a simple Act to change. Reform has been discussed for 30+ years.