The Cause of Abandoned Public Development Projects (Case Study FCDA Federal Capital Territory Abuja)
Chapter One
AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
The aims of this project are to examine the causes and effect f abandoned Public Development Projects in the Federal Capital Territory Abuja.
The above aim was drafted with the following objectives in mind.
- To establish and identify the cause of Abandoned public developmeent project in the Federal Capitals Territory Abuja.
- To investigate the effect of the abandoned public development projects on the livs of the citizens.
- To investigate its effects also on the environment.
- To suggest possible solution to causes of abandonment of public development projects in the Federal Capital Territory Abuja.
CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW
ABANDONMENT
Abandonment may be defined as the relinquishment of all interest in real property or fixtures there on with no intention to reclaim or use again. Oxford Advanced Learner Dictionary fifth edition defined abandonment as the action of abandoning something or to withdraw support or help from somebody or something. To abandon something means to stop doing or being involved in something, or to stop something happening, especially before it is finished.
Another view Nwosu (1995) argues that abandonment is a non-completion of works of building at any stage prior to handing over. Abandonment as applied to property means unqualified relinquishment of possession and ownership without transferring it to any other person. It is just the equivalence of throwing property away.
DEVELOPMENT
Development is defined in Nigerian Urban and Regional Planning Laws of (1992) as the carrying out of any building, Engineering, Mining or other operations in over or under any land or the making of any environmentally significant changes in the use of any building or other land.
Bilchin (1980) defined “Development” as the process of any carrying out works involving a change in the physical use or in the intensity of an existing use of land or building. Newman (1981) defines “development” according to town and country planning act 1971 section 22 (1) as the carrying out of building, engineering, mining or other operations in, over or under ladn or the marking of any material change in the use of any building or other land.
THE DEVELOPMENT PROCESS IN THE BUILDING INDUSTRY
Just as planning is theoretically defined as a rational decision making process, so too the development process can be said to posses as inherent logic or rational.
A similar cycle from goal formation through the setting up of objectives generation of alternative strategies, their evaluation selection and implementation tot he monitoring review and feedback of initial goals can be seen clearly.
Naturally however the principal goal in the public sector is invariable one of providing satisfaction for citizens although it also plays an increasingly prominent part in the development process of decision making
In reality there can be no authoritative classification of the process of development due to heterogeneous nature of land market, the range of development situation is almost infinite.
PROJECT
A project may be defined as a task, a scheme or any part of there investing resources. It is usual therefore to refer to project as investment or vice – versa. Project are the building blocks of an investment plan.
PUBLIC SECTION INVESTMENT IN HOUSING DEVELOPMENT
The involvement of the past government in the housing sector could be examined under three phases.
- The colonial period
- The past independence period (1960 – 1979)
- The second civilian administration (1979 – 1983)
- The military administration
CHAPTER THREE
METHODOLOGY
For an effective research to be conducted there exist the need for availability of vital information.
This research has adopted some methods of obtaining information in the study area under research.
Some of the information sources are grouped into two heading.
- Primary Source
- secondary source
PRIMARY SOURCE
This is the most important and reliable source of information in the report.
It includes the conduct of a survey of the area covered by the project and inspection of some of the buildings under construction in Area 3 e.g. Government Technical College, Students Hostels of University of Abuja at Gwagwalada, Jibi Resettlement Village at Deidei, and New N.T.A. Headquarters at Area 11.
Interviews were also conducted with the staff of the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) and some contractors.
SECONDARY SOURCE
The secondary sources were the
- Recorders of previous and on going development.
- Text Books, Journals, Diaries etc.
LIMITATIONS
There were few predicaments that limited against widening the scope of this research project.
Some of the limitations include
CHAPTER FOUR
DATA ANALYSIS
An interview was conducted among 35 people who showed interest and willingness to partake in the research work.
The characteristics of the respondent are shown in the table below.
The questions sought the respondents views on the causes of abandonment of Federal Capital Development Authority projects generally its effects and possible solutions.
The respondents were selected from those people found on the various sites and Federal Capital Development Authority Staff.
CHAPTER FIVE
SUMMARY OF FINDING, RECOMMENDATION AND CONCLUSION
This chapter is serving as the concluding chapter of the research work where summary of findings will be analyzed and recommendation will be given on the steps to be taken to stop abandonment of projects.
SUMMARY OF FINDINGS
From the presentations and analysis of the data collected during the surveying in the previous chapters, the following can be summarized as causes for abandonment of projects in Federal Capital Territory.
- Inadequate funding by government.
- Inadequate planning
- Frequent changes in governments priporities.
- Delay in payments to contractors
- Bureaucracy (administrative bottle necks).
- High interest rate.
- Faulty design / changes in design after take off.
The study also identified some effects of abandonment of projects which include.
- Under utilization of man power, under utilization of equipment and plant purchased for the projects.
RECOMMENDATION
In order to avoid continuous occurrence of abandonment of public projects here and there, the following recommendations and suggestions are here by made.
- Before embarking on any project a proper detailed and professional feasibility and viability appraised should be made to determined its worth whileness.
- Provision for funding from inception to completion stage should be made.
- Proper planning e.g. target planning on the development stage of the work as it progresses with checks and balances should be put in place.
- All administrative bureaucratic bottle necks that cause delay in paying contractors should be avoided.
- Honest, hardworking and qualified professionals should be employed for government projects.
- Contracts should be awarded based on merits.
- There should be continuity in government policies on important projects.
CONCLUSION
From this study, research and analysis as to the causes of abandonment of public projects in the Federal Capital Territory by Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA), its effect and possible solutions, it is hope that the study will be found useful in the development and implementation of appropriate construction programmes especially as it affects projects within the Federal Capital Territory in particular and Nigeria in general.
REFERENCES
- Thorn Croftm (1965): Principle of Estate Management London. The Estate Gazethe
- Lawal M.I. (1997): Principle and Practice Housing Management
- Nwosu Chukwuemeka (1995): The Project Cost Control Panacea for Abandonment of Project.
- The Quantity Survey Volume 20: (page 36)January / March 1995.
- Federal Capital Territory Journal (1989) Background History and Progress of the Federal Capital Territory.