‘Growing from $4.4bn to $30bn economy’ — Enugu gov-elect inaugurates 64-member transition committee

Peter Mbah, governor-elect of Enugu, has inaugurated a 64-member transition committee ahead of his swearing-in on May 29.

The committee is chaired by Ike Chioke, group managing director of Afrinvest (West Africa).

Speaking at the inauguration in Enugu, on Thursday, Mbah asked the committee members to produce an “implementable action plan” in line with his manifesto.

Mbah said the people of the state elected him as governor believing that he will take them through a “consequential journey of growth, development, and greatness”.

He said his vision for Enugu will drive the south-east state to take back “that preeminent position that she has always played in the development of this country”.

“We have conceived a growth plan that is ambitious both in the economic and social indicators. Therefore, we talked about growing the economy from the current level of $4.4 billion to $30 billion. We talked about making sure that we achieve a zero percent rate in our poverty headcount index. We talked about making Enugu state the preferred destination for investment, business, tourism, and living,” he said.

“We talked about unpacking the skills of the youths in digital technology so that the administration can equip a minimum of 40,000 youths in digital technology and a minimum of 10,000 youths in practical skills yearly.”

Mbah said his administration will provide key enablers to attract businesses and help them get returns on investment.

“We also know that the growth level we are talking about cannot come from the public sector alone. This growth will happen through constructive investment and that will come largely from the private sector,” the governor-elect said.

“But we also believe that with the vision and dream we have expressed, with the work you are going to do in this committee, they are achievable despite being ambitious because they are measurable.

“Of course, when we unveiled this plan, we had the naysayers and the critics. And it was not difficult to see why because if you do the trend analysis, you will of course be doubtful.

“So, we believe that you can craft a document that can give us that implementable action plan.”