Dealing with Construction Permits in
Zambia
Listed below is detailed summary of the procedures, time and costs to build a warehouse —including obtaining necessary licenses and permits, completing required notifications and inspections and obtaining utility connections.
The information appearing on this page was collected as part of the Doing Business project, which measures and compares regulations relevant to the life cycle of a small- to medium-sized domestic business in 183 economies. The most recent round of data collection for the project was completed in June 2011.
-
Building a warehouse
-
Estimated Warehouse Value:
ZMK 2,972,907,798
- City: Lusaka
| No. |
Procedure |
Time to Complete |
Associated Costs |
| 1 |
Obtain planning permit (location permit)
A location permit grants only the right to build on a plot and is a prerequisite for the other procedures (Town and Country Planning Act CAP 283). The statutory time limit under the act is 90 days.
Agency: City or Municipal Council
|
60 days
|
no charge
|
| 2 |
Obtain notarization of property title
There is no requirement that the title be notarized by a notary public (who might charge up to USD 100).
One can obtain a copy of the title and have it stamped either by a lawyer, for about USD 2, or by the local court, for free. The former alternative is more common. This process takes few minutes, and no appointment is needed. Due to fraud, however, the law might be changed in the future to require notarization by a notary public.
Agency: Lawyer or Local Court
|
1 day
|
USD 2
|
| 3 |
Obtain building permit from the municipal authority (City Development Department)
The approval permit is valid for 6 months and may be extended for another 6 months. Several documents are necessary to obtain this approval, including a notarized title of property or proof of ownership. The pertinent project documents are circulated for clearance and approval among the following departments:
- Fire Department.
- Environmental Council.
- Health Department.
- Water Authority.
The application for a building permit is scrutinized by all departments of the local authority (Engineering, Water, Survey, Fire, and Health, etc.). The procedure includes inspections. Approximately once a month, the different agencies meet to approve the permits. The statutory time limit for approval of a building permit is 90 days, after which, legally, the company only has to notify the municipality and start construction. Most of the permits are granted on first application. The payment is 0.25% of the cost, estimated at around USD 533 per square meter.
All inspections mentioned are required by the General Authorities Bylaws to take place on the site. In practice, however, most are done administratively. The only departments that might go on site are the Environmental Council and, to a lesser degree, the Sewerage Department. More often than not, these departments do not check the site because they already know where it is located and what it is equipped with. If the Environmental Council ever inspects the site, it would not need to notify the constructor unless it needed to resolve some issues with BuildCo present.
Agency: Municipal Authority (City Development Department)
|
60 days
|
ZMK 7,432,269
|
| * 4 |
Submit Environmental Impact Assessment
An Environmental Impact Assessment Report (12 copies) must be submitted to the Environmental Council. The report must specify the project brief noise levels, heat, radioactivity, emissions, and environmental effects (Environmental and Pollution Act CAP 204). For a simple warehouse project, the report can be done in-house.
Agency: Environmental Council
|
2 days
|
ZMK 97,499,160
|
| 5 |
Inform the municipality of the beginning of construction and receive inspection of foundation works
The Council has introduced an Inspection fee though the Engineering Department. This covers transportation for inspectors. The inspection usually takes place within 1-2 hours. This is a one off payment and covers all inspections.
Agency: Engineering Department of the Local Authority
|
1 day
|
ZMK 1,200,000
|
| 6 |
Request and receive inspection of concrete works
Although there is no additional charge, the transport costs of the Engineering Department are usually provided by the builder. The inspection involves quality checks of materials and procedures (1–2 hours).
Agency: Engineering Department of the Local Authority
|
1 day
|
no charge
|
| 7 |
Obtain completion certificate/ occupancy permit
Agency: Local Authority
|
40 days
|
no charge
|
| * 8 |
Receive inspection by the Fire Department
All inspections are a prerequisite for the completion certificate/occupancy permit, but are not coordinated.
Agency: Fire Department
|
1 day
|
no charge
|
| * 9 |
Receive inspection by the Environmental Council
Agency: Environmental Council
|
1 day
|
no charge
|
| * 10 |
Request opinions on project completion by the Public Health Agency
This procedure is essentially about inspecting sanitation to make sure it is conform to the original plans. The public health agency checks mainly the sewerage system to make sure that supplies are there and that discharge has been properly implemented.
Agency: Public Health Agency
|
6 days
|
no charge
|
| 11 |
Request water and sewerage services and inspection
Agency: Zambia Electricity Supply Company Ltd. (ZESCO)
|
1 day
|
no charge
|
| * 12 |
Receive site inspection by the water authority
Site inspection and estimation of water and sewerage installation costs are done at this stage. After the inspection has been requested, it takes about 3 days for the inspection team to check the construction site.
Agency: Lusaka Water and Sewerage Company Limited
|
1 day
|
no charge
|
| * 13 |
Obtain water and sewerage connection
Agency: Lusaka Water and Sewerage Company Limited
|
7 days
|
ZMK 500,000
|
| * 14 |
Obtain telephone connection
This procedure for obtaining telephone service can be started as soon as the occupancy permit has been obtained.
Agency: Zambia Telecommunications Company Ltd. (ZAMTEL)
|
30 days
|
ZMK 300,000
|
* Takes place simultaneously with another procedure.