Wike signs 26,272 Certificates of Occupancy in Abuja in three years

President Bola Tinubu’s administration has signed 26,272 Certificates of Occupancy (C-of-O) in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, since assuming power three years ago.

The figure is 17,575 more than the number of signatures collected in 13 years in the federal capital.

Lere Olayinka, media aide to the Minister of FCT, Nyesom Wike, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday in Abuja.

He said Mr Wike signed the certificates to ease doing business in the territory, in line with President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

“To aid the ease of doing business in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), and in line with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, a total of 26,272 Certificates of Occupancy (C-of-O) have been signed by the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, since the President assumed office.

“This is against a total of 8,697 produced and signed between 2010 and 2023,” the statement said.

Olayinka said that during the five and a half years of President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration, 5,500 Certificates of Occupancy were issued and signed, while 3,197 were issued and signed during the eight years of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.

He stated that many of the allottees who are beneficiaries of the 26,272 certificates produced and signed by the FCT Administration under Wike got their allocations more than 10 years ago.

Read the full statement:

FCT: Tinubu’s govt signs 26,272 Certificates of Occupancy to aid businesses, 17,575 more than [the number] signed in 13 years

To aid the ease of doing business in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), and in line with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, a total of 26,272 Certificates of Occupancy (C-of-O) have been signed by the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, since the President assumed office.

This is against a total of 8,697 produced and signed between 2010 and 2023.

During the five and a half years of President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration, a total of 5,500 Certificates of Occupancy were issued and signed, while 3,197 were issued and signed during the eight years of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.

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.

A Certificate of Occupancy serves as trusted collateral for commercial loans, mortgages, or business expansion capital.

The inability of property owners to obtain Certificates of Occupancy when needed is a challenge for small and medium businesses, as it restricts access to funding.

Senior Special Assistant to the FCT Minister on Public Communications and Social Media, Lere Olayinka, said in a statement on Sunday that the FCT Administration under the present Government of President Tinubu has streamlined the process to enable land allottees to receive their documents within two weeks of completing payments.

“The moment necessary payments are made, land allottees can now get their C-of-O within two weeks.

“Also, automated notifications have been introduced to ensure that land allottees are informed when their documents are ready for collection,” Olayinka said.

He attributed the delays under previous administrations to inefficiencies that discouraged landowners from completing payments.

ALSO READ: Wike signs 5,481 certificates of occupancy

Apart from producing and signing 26,272 Certificates of Occupancy, a total of 2,521 Consents to Assign were granted. In contrast, 177 Consents to Mortgage were granted in the last three years of President Tinubu’s administration, by the FCT Administration under Nyesom Wike.

This is against 753 Consents to assign and 180 Consents to Mortgage granted by the administration of President Jonathan, as well as 684 Consents to assign and 164 Consents to Mortgage granted during the eight-year government of President Buhari.

A consent to assign is a legal document required when selling a property or transferring loan agreements. In contrast, a consent to mortgage is official approval required before a property can be used as collateral for a loan.

Lere Olayinka
Senior Special Assistant
Public Communications and Social Media
August 16, 2026