FG, States Must Develop Rural Communities To Decongest Cities – NIESV

By Ayodele Oni

Nigeria Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers has made case for rapid development of rural communities to check over population of major cities. NIESV charged federal and state governments to extend infrastructural development to rural areas in the country in a bid to decongest the cities.

The institution also urged that the most appropriate way to prevent cities from being overpopulated by those in search of greener pasture, was to ensure that institutions, industries among others thrived in communities outside the cities.

NIEV President, Mr. Johnbull Amayaevbo, made the remarks in Akure over the weekend during the investiture ceremony of Mr Idris Oloruntoba as the 15th Chairman of the Ondo State Branch of the institution and the inauguration of the 2022/2024 executive committee.

According to Amayaevbo, the institution has been making moves to partner the government on how the decongestion process can be achieved seamlessly.

“Take for instance, a country like South Africa, if you have been to Sun City, it was a bush, but some people came up and did a proposal. Sun City is one of the best cities in South Africa today.

“So we will partner and collaborate with the state governments to extend infrastructural facilities to rural communities to decongest the cities.

“If we have good infrastructure outside the cities, if we have higher institutions outside the cities, if we have good industries outside the cities and if there is power, many people will not come into the city and start dragging for nothing.

“So we will advise the government and we have been doing that but we will not be tired of doing it to making sure that they take our proposal and I know that this state governor (Akeredolu) listen a lot and most other governors too.

“So we will collaborate with government to ensure that infrastructural provision is key and we will give them more technical advice and report on how to achieving the decongestion of our cities in collaboration with other professional bodies.”

On quackery within NIESV, Amayaevbo, said “However, we are doing a lot of advocacy right now to let the public know who the quacks are and who the estate agents are.

“Currently, we are part of those sponsoring a bill at the National Assembly regarding estate agency law in Nigeria. The last visit we had with the Chairman of EFCC, he was very much interested.

“We are doing everything as a professional body to bring across the country agents, train them and asked them to belong to that association, so that if anything is done wrongly by them, they can be traced. As it is, you hardly can trace them.”

While pledging that the general interests of the profession will be the focus of the his executives, the new state Chairman advised that the public and government should rely on the professional body on policy formulation, valuation as well as land administration.

“The Executive Committee members have met and wish to let you know that we have hit the ground running knowing that two years is such a short time.

“We have made up our minds to leave the branch much better than we met it. We wish to let you know that we have a number of strategies in place which we shall strive to execute.”