FG reviews 932 laws, drops 269 obsolete enactments

The Federal Government says it has reviewed 932 federal enactments and 731 subsidiary legislations, identifying 269 laws as obsolete, spent or repealed for exclusion from the proposed 2025 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria.

The Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), disclosed this on Thursday in Abuja, during the presentation of the final report of the Committee on the Review, Update and Consolidation of the Laws of the Federation.

Fagbemi said 663 of the 932 enactments examined, alongside their relevant subsidiary legislation, had been identified for inclusion in the revised edition, while 269 were considered obsolete, spent or repealed.

“I am informed that the Committee examined 932 Federal enactments and 731 subsidiary legislations. Of the 932 enactments considered, 663, together with their relevant subsidiary legislation, have been identified for inclusion in the LFN 2025, while 269 were identified as obsolete, spent or repealed.

“These outcomes represent substantial progress towards providing the country with an updated and consolidated body of Federal laws,” he said.

The AGF said the exercise was necessary to update Nigeria’s legal framework, noting that the last official consolidation of the Laws of the Federation was undertaken in 2004.

“As you are aware, the last official consolidation of the Laws of the Federation was undertaken in 2004. More than twenty years have since elapsed, during which Nigeria has witnessed significant legislative, constitutional, institutional and technological developments,” he said.

“Several new enactments and amendments have accumulated over this period, making a comprehensive review imperative to ensure that our body of Federal laws remains coherent, current, accessible and responsive to the needs of our country,” he added.

Fagbemi explained that he constituted the committee on October 24, 2024, with the mandate to review federal enactments and subsidiary legislation, identify obsolete laws, address inconsistencies and overlaps, and produce an authoritative and accessible edition of the country’s laws.

He commended the committee, chaired by Olawale Fapohunda (SAN), for its work, saying the assignment involved extensive legal research, legislative analysis, technical coordination and editorial work.

Fagbemi said the committee adopted a structured approach involving 14 thematic working groups, supported by retreats and technical engagements, to harmonise the outputs and ensure quality assurance.

He also acknowledged the contributions of development partners and collaborating institutions, including the ROLAC Programme, the Law Commission of England and Wales, LexisNexis South Africa, the Lagos State Law Reform Commission and Law Pavilion.

The minister said the report would be presented to President Bola Tinubu for onward transmission to the National Assembly for legislative consideration and action.

“The successful conclusion of this exercise will require the continued collaboration of the Executive and the Legislature,” he said.

Fagbemi warned against allowing another lengthy gap between consolidations, stressing the need for a sustainable mechanism for updating the country’s laws.

“The gap of more than twenty years between the last consolidation and the present exercise should not be repeated. We must strengthen our capacity to track new enactments, amendments and subsidiary legislation so that our laws remain current and responsive to emerging developments,” he said.

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Earlier, Fapohunda said the committee had completed its assignment after more than two years of reviewing, harmonising and consolidating federal legislation.

He said the exercise went beyond reproducing existing laws, as the committee examined their continuing relevance and status, while identifying provisions that required further legislative attention.

“Our primary objective was clear—to purge obsolete and redundant statutes, resolve conflicting provisions, and seamlessly integrate contemporary socio-economic and technological realities into our national legal framework,” he said.

Fapohunda disclosed that the committee examined 932 federal enactments and 731 subsidiary legislations, clearing 664 enactments and their accompanying subsidiary legislations for inclusion in the 2025 edition, while dropping 268 enactments as obsolete, spent or repealed.

He said the committee constituted 14 working groups, supported by technical teams responsible for collation, drafting, quality assurance, oversight and editorial review.

The chairman said digital tools, including cloud-based document management systems, shared working platforms and virtual meetings, were also deployed to facilitate collaboration among members working from different locations.

However, he identified several areas requiring further legislative attention, including archaic statutory language, cumbersome cross-references, outdated chapter numbers and inconsistencies in the sequencing of some Acts.

He also raised concerns over statutory fines and fees that had failed to reflect prevailing economic realities.

“The need to review certain statutory fines and fees which have not kept pace with prevailing economic realities—some as low as ten or fifty Naira,” he said.

The committee recommended that the Attorney General issue an advisory note to ministries, departments and agencies on established procedures for reviewing their enabling and subsidiary legislation.

Fapohunda said recurring deficiencies in legislative drafting by some MDAs made the intervention necessary to prevent ambiguities and conflicting provisions.

He also called for a centralised national repository of federal legislation to ensure easier access to existing laws and facilitate continuous updates.

“Previously, the absence of a consolidated, easily accessible reference hub for sourcing federal statutes proved to be a significant impediment, turning the committee’s mandate into a truly Herculean task,” he said.

The chairman said the committee had recommended the institutionalisation of a structured mechanism for continuous law revision to prevent the country from experiencing another prolonged period without a comprehensive consolidation.

He subsequently presented the committee’s final report and draft copies of the 20 volumes of the Laws of the Federation 2025 to the AGF for consideration and further executive action.