The Development Control Department (DCD) of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja says it has generated N5.5 billion in just 42 months from

land administration.

The department revealed this in Port Harcourt where it has been teaching the two-year-old Greater Port Harcourt City Development Authority

(GPHCDA) how it made a whopping N5.5 billion and also how land control must be unified.

Yahaya Yusuf, the director of the department, who revealed this  at an exclusive gathering of experts in Port Harcourt,  said the FCT earned the

highest amount of N2.19 billion from 1045 approvals out of 1860 applications.
 

“In the first half of 2011 however, applications drastically dropped to 765 with a mere 365 approvals but revenue from it grew to N1.2 billion,

contrary to 901 in 2008 with N701.96m and 1181 in 2009 with income of N1.40 billion. 1570 and 1934 applications were received in 2008 and 2009

respectively”, he said.

Yusuf, who spent two days in the garden city took time to drill the board and management of the Port Harcourt megacity as well as top Rivers

State government officials on how the FCT had effectively pursued its revenue yielding and land control enforcement operations, insisting on

credibility, uniformity of land administration activities and strict enforcement without bias.

This was part of a two-day interactive and interface workshop at the Atlantic Hall of the Hotel Presidential in Port Harcourt on; “Erecting a

Legislative and Administrative Framework for Planning and Development Control in the Greater Port Harcourt City”.

The essence may not be on how to make more revenue from land administration per se but on how to streamline land approval mechanisms in

the emerging megacity. This is believed to be a major fallout of the clamour at the recently-concluded Rivers State Investors’ Forum (RIVINVEST)

which had prompted a pledge by the Chibuike Amaechi administration to begin processes to make property registration a one-stop-shop affair,

and fast.

Business Day gathered that in achieving this, it was identified that while the GPHCDA has been mandated by law since 2009 to approve property

development and regulate development control in the megacity comprising eight council areas, there have been frictions from the Urban

Development Board that derives its powers from a 2003 law and the councils that also have inherent powers to give out lands.

Yusuf, along with other experts, have however made a case for reverting of all land administration matters in a modern city in one authority,

probably prompting the express declaration by the governor right at the workshop that all such powers have now been conferred on the GPHCDA,

though with some collaboration with the former competitors.