The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Nyesom Wike, has signed a total of 26,272 Certificates of Occupancy (C-of-Os) since President Bola Ahmed Tinubu assumed office in May 2023, significantly surpassing the combined output of the previous 13 years.
According to a statement issued on Sunday by the Senior Special Assistant to the FCT Minister on Public Communications and Social Media, Lere Olayinka, the figure is 17,575 higher than the 8,697 C-of-Os produced and signed between 2010 and 2023.
A breakdown shows that 5,500 Certificates of Occupancy were produced and signed during the five-and-a-half-year administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan, while 3,197 were signed during the eight-year administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari.
Olayinka explained that the achievement is in line with President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda and is aimed at improving the ease of doing business in the FCT.
“Many of the allottees who are beneficiaries of the 26,272 Certificates of Occupancy produced and signed by the FCT Administration under Wike received their allocations more than 10 years ago,” the statement noted.
A Certificate of Occupancy serves as trusted collateral for commercial loans, mortgages, and business expansion. The inability of property owners to obtain C-of-Os when needed has long been a major challenge for small and medium-sized businesses, restricting their access to funding.
To address this, the FCT Administration under Wike has streamlined the process. Land allottees who complete the necessary payments can now receive their Certificates of Occupancy within two weeks. An automated notification system has also been introduced to inform beneficiaries when their documents are ready for collection.
In addition to the 26,272 C-of-Os, the FCT Administration granted 2,521 Consents to Assign and 177 Consents to Mortgage in the last three years. This compares with 753 Consents to Assign and 180 Consents to Mortgage under the Jonathan administration, and 684 Consents to Assign and 164 Consents to Mortgage under the Buhari administration.
The FCT Administration described the development as a major boost to land administration, property ownership security, and economic activity in the Federal Capital Territory.