Enugu Govt. engages stakeholders on 25-year development plan

The Enugu State Government on Tuesday, engaged various stakeholders on its 25-year development plan aimed at sustaining growth, infrastructure and development beyond the tenure of the present administration.

The event, titled “Stakeholders’ Engagement and Data Collection Exercise for Enugu State Development Plan”, was organised by the State Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning in Enugu.

The stakeholders comprised traditional and religious leaders, students, women, youths, farmers, labour unions, academics, business leaders, Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) and media practitioners.

They are expected to contribute to the plan, which would serve as a blueprint for successive governments in the state until 2051.

Mr Chris-Roberts Ozongwu, the State Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, described the engagement as a needs assessment exercise where citizens were given the opportunity to make their inputs.

According to him, the stakeholders are working towards developing a plan that will guide the state’s development from now until 2051.

“It is not about the government of Peter Mbah but about the people of the state, and that is why people across sectors are here to be heard, make their contributions and, in the end, take ownership of the plan.

“It is expected that any government that comes into office within the next 25 years will be able to use the plan as a guide,” he said.

He described Gov. Peter Mbah as a dynamic and radical leader who did not believe in the usual ways of doing things, adding that his approach had accelerated the state’s development since he came on board.

He commended the participants for attending the event, stressing that the development plan encompassed all sectors of the state’s economy.

On her part, Mrs Onyinye Akubuilo-Okpalanma, Senior Special Assistant to Gov Mbah on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), said the engagement became necessary as it would help the state outline its development priorities for the next 25 years.

She added that the exercise was supported by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and her office to ensure that the SDGs were integrated into the state’s development plan.

She explained that if the ongoing developmental strides under the Mbah administration were sustained, Enugu State would become a reference point for Nigeria and Africa.

A participant and Chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in the state, Comrade Fabian Nwigbo, described the engagement as a welcome development, saying it offered participants the opportunity to contribute to the state’s development plan.

“In the past, we were not used to this system of government. What we used to see was a situation where the government design plans based on what it thought was good for us and presented them to us.

“But today, we have the privilege of having a government that wants the people to participate in its activities and contribute to decisions on what it intends to achieve for them,” he said.