About FCDA

In August 1975, the military Government of the late Gen Murtala Ramat Muhammad announced the setting up of the Justice Akinola Aguda Committee on the location of a new capital. The committee recommended a large area of virgin land (8,000 square kilometers) around the plains of Abuja carved out from Niger, old Kwara, and old Plateau states. The Federal Military Government accepted the Aguda Committee’s recommendations and on 5^th February, 2976, the Federal Capital Territory Decree No 6 was promulgated, establishing the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The Decree No. 6 of 1976 (CAP 128 laws of the Federation) also created the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) which was charged with the responsibilities of planning, Development, and Administration of the Federal Capital City (FCC) and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) as a whole. The Federal Government subsequently created the Ministry for Federal Capital Territory (MFCT) through Gazette No 55 Vol. 66 of 26^th October 1979, with the functions and responsibilities for the administration of the FCT, control of Development within FCT arrangement for the provision of social services and allocation of Urban and Rural Lands in FCT. Under this arrangement, the FCT Minister has a dual responsibility as the minister and the Chairman of the FCDA Board.

In another development, in 1980, the Federal Government created the Federal Capital Territory (FCTA), charged with the basic responsibility of providing local Administration and provision of rural infrastructure. From 1983, MFCT and the FCDA existed in that order with an overlap of functions and responsibilities.

In December 2004, as part of the general reforms by the Government in restructuring the FCT Administrative machinery as contained in the Federal Capital Territory (Establishment of Functions and Departments) and Federal Capital Territory (Dissolution) Order No. 1, 2004, approval was granted to create Mandate Secretariats for the provision of services namely: social services, Education, Agriculture, Transport, and Health.

The dissolution order resulted in the creation of a Mandate Secretariat to handle the provision of social services, Education, Agriculture, Transport, and Health as well as the Satellite Towns Development Agency (STDA). Similarly, in August 2008, the FCT Administration approved the transfer of the default Satellite Towns Development Agency (STDA) back to FCDA as a Department named Satellite Towns Infrastructure (STI).

In June 2012, another organization was carried out by the FCTA in which the Department of Satellite Towns Infrastructure (DSTI) was removed from FCDA and reverted to an Agency known as Satellite Towns Development Agency (STDA).

Responsibilities of the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA)

Under Decree 6 of 1979, the FCDA is charged with the following responsibilities:

• Choice of site for the location of the Capital City
• Preparation of a master plan for the Capital City and the Capital Territory
• Provision of municipal services within the Federal Capital Territory
• Provision of infrastructural services in accordance with the master plan
• Coordination of the activities of all ministries, Departments, and Agencies of Government within the FCT.