The Federal Capital Territory Administration, FCTA, says it has commenced the electronic vetting of building plans to facilitate the approval of private and public property development in Abuja.

The FCTA’s director of development control, Yusuf Yahaya, told journalists in Abuja that the initiative is aimed at enhancing the integrity of the processes involved in the approval of building plans while also making the system more readily accessible by Nigerians in the Diaspora.

According to him, the idea is also in line with the cashless policy introduced by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN.

Yahaya said with the e-vetting system, building plans can be submitted as soft copies to the development control department and such documents can be processed within a short space of time.

He also said that the e-vetting of building plans before approval will eventually erase the practice of land racketeering in the city, thereby making it easier for people to acquire property in Abuja without losing their money to illegal fraudsters posing as middle men.

“If you assess our website, you will also notice that there is a documentary there on restoring the Abuja master plan. A lot is been elucidated there on what you need to do to get your plans approved very fast. We have also developed the development control manual which guides people on the kind of development they can put up where and this manual is usually given to people as they submit plans for processes so that they can review it,” the director said.

The administration has also put certain measures in place to boost the synergy between the development control department and other agencies that are responsible for the smooth administration of land and property procurement processes in Abuja.

It believes that the new e-vetting system of building plans would help to check insecurity and eliminate all forms of fraud associated with the acquisition of land in the Nigerian Capital.