[Photo: File]

The government is moving to tighten control over development applications after identifying delays caused by multiple agencies being involved in the approval process.

Minister for Housing and Local Government Maciu Nalumisa states that the Department of Town and Country Planning has introduced new coordination and tracking measures to make
authorities more accountable for applications in their hands.

The Department now holds fortnightly meetings with the Fiji Roads Authority, Water Authority of Fiji, Energy Fiji Limited and other relevant agencies.

The meetings bring technical agencies together to consider major proposals rather than requiring developers and planners to seek responses separately from each agency.

The Department has also set an internal five-day turnaround target for major development matters once all information and documentation required for assessment have been provided.

Municipal councils are being followed up to ensure applications requiring consideration by the Department are referred without unnecessary delays.

Nalumisa explained that councils have been reminded that major applications should not be held where referral to the Department is required.

A master tracker and electronic register has also been introduced for rezoning applications.

It records key dates, the status of each application, outstanding actions and the authority responsible for the next step.

This allows the Department and municipal councils to identify ageing applications and follow up outstanding work before matters remain unattended.

The government is also preparing a Building Permit Approval System, known as BPAS.

The proposed system will create a common online workflow for municipal councils, the Department of Town and Country Planning, infrastructure agencies, regulators and other stakeholders.

Applicants will eventually be able to track their applications, while agencies will be able to see referrals, technical comments, approval conditions and the responsibility for each stage.

BPAS has not yet gone fully online.

Nalumisa adds that the remaining regulations and legal requirements are being progressed through the Office of the Solicitor-General before implementation.

The Prime Minister’s Office Investment Taskforce is also being used to deal with major projects affected by cross-government issues.

However, Nalumisa stressed that the taskforce does not remove statutory requirements.

He said its purpose was to resolve administrative and inter-agency problems so projects that meet the required standards are not unnecessarily delayed.