In a bid to encourage voluntary compliance to building rights, the Lagos State Government, through the Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development, has engaged Developers under the aegis of the Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria (REDAN), Lagos State Chapter.
Speaking at the forum, tagged Developers Roundtable, at the Oriental Hotel, Victoria Island, on Wednesday, the Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Dr. Idris Salako, said that the programme was targetted at enhancing collaboration and blocking the communication gap between Government and Stakeholders in order to cultivate voluntary compliance on the part of the developers.
Salako added that it was important for developers to get adequate information on the plans and activities of the government, so as to promote a sustainable environment in the State in line with the T.H.E.M.E.S Agenda of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu led administration.
He maintained that the State Government had taken many important steps towards enhancing the ease of doing business in Lagos State.
“We have taken care to ensure that all parts of the State are covered by a planning instrument, as we have vigorously prepared and reviewed Master Plans and Model City Plans, while we have awarded Nine Action Area Plans and Nine Development Guide Plans to give room for the sustainable development of the State”, he said.
According to him, the State Government has increased the number of Supervisory Directors and District Heads, devolved the Planning Permit Approval power and adopted digitisation of processes in order to fast track the Planning Permit process.
“We have also released the lands under Government acquisition in some parts of the State. This move, I am sure, will allow developers to tidy their approvals in the affected areas”, Dr. Salako said.
Corroborating the Commissioner, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Urban Development, Mr. Ganiyu Adele Ayuba, stated that the vision of the State Government for the built environment could be achieved in collaboration with developers, whom he urged to apply the gains of the discussion to their activities in the built environment.
He revealed that for seamless and continuous engagement with stakeholders, the Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development (MPP&UD) developed a mobile app to assist information sharing and real-time engagement with features such as the ePP registration, ePP guidance, uploading Planning Permit and a database of registered professionals and stakeholders tagged the ‘Marketplace’.
The Ministry’s mobile app was elaborately presented and demonstrated to the stakeholders at the forum by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development, Engr. Abiola Kosegbe, who also urged the developers to always access the platform for interactions with the Ministry.
Earlier, the Chairman, Lagos State Chapter of REDAN, Mr. Bamidele Onalaja, said that the stakeholders’ forum was conceived to ease the challenges faced by developers in erecting buildings in the State.
His words: “Getting necessary permits has become a big issue and we see the urgent need to address it”.
To further intimate the developers of their operating procedures, General Managers of the Lagos State Physical Planning Permit Authority, Lagos State Building Control Appeals, Lagos State Urban Renewal Agency, Lagos State Materials Testing Laboratory and Lagos State New Towns Development Authority, as well as the Director of Development Matters in the Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development, took turns to address the developers.
