The Nigerian Institute of Architects (NIA) was founded in Lagos on 1st April 1960, barely six months before Nigeria attained independence from the United Kingdom. Initially called the Nigerian Society of Architects with only thirteen members at the time of its formal inauguration at the premises of the National House of Representatives, the professional organization had emerged from a modest beginning of an 8-member Study Group of Architects which was formed in 1958 to carry out the detailed planning for the establishment of the institute.

The fact that Lagos was for many years the capital of Nigeria attracted a lot of commercial activities and the Federal and State Government had huge investments in infrastructure in the city. It is no surprise therefore that a very large percentage of Members of the Institute both in Government Services and the Private Sector operated in Lagos...