SEDC to roll out community programmes in Southeast
By Anayo Okoli
ENUGU: The South East Development Commission (SEDC) says it will soon roll out community-based programmes aimed at improving the welfare and livelihoods of people in rural communities across the region.
The Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of SEDC, Mark Okoye Jnr, disclosed this during the Commission’s Renewed Hope Community Advancement Programme (REHCAP) sensitisation and awareness campaign in Ngbo, Ohaukwu Local Government Area of Ebonyi State.
Okoye said the Commission had been consulting traditional rulers, town union executives, religious leaders and other stakeholders across the South East to identify priority areas where its interventions would have the greatest impact.
He was represented at the event by SEDC’s Executive Director, Natural Resources, Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr Cliff Ogbede.
According to Okoye, the consultative approach was designed to ensure that the Commission’s interventions were based on the actual needs and aspirations of communities.
“As a Federal Government agency established to steer the ship of development in the region, we have come to interface with you and identify projects that will improve the lives of our people and, at the same time, increase commercial activities within our rural communities,” Ogbede said on his behalf.
He said the Commission had invested considerable time since its establishment in developing a comprehensive development blueprint for the South East, which he said had received the endorsement of the five governors in the region.
Ogbede explained that although many people expected SEDC to commence immediate project execution after its inauguration, the Commission deliberately prioritised planning and the development of a sustainable roadmap.
“I am aware that many people in the region thought that we would swing into action immediately after our inauguration. Rather, we invested time in developing a sustainable roadmap for the development of the region,” he said.
He stressed that the scale of the development challenges confronting the South East required strategic deployment of available resources.
“No amount received from the Federal Government will be enough to develop the region, considering the magnitude of the ecological challenges and the infrastructure deficit arising from decades of neglect and the devastating effects of the civil war.
“Our responsibility, therefore, is to optimise the use and deployment of the resources available to us,” he said.
Ogbede assured that SEDC would complement its broader regional development plans with interventions designed to improve the quality of life and economic opportunities of people at the community level.
He also highlighted the mandate and activities of the Commission and expressed appreciation to President Bola Tinubu for establishing SEDC as an instrument for the development and regeneration of the South East.
Ngbo presents development priorities
Speaking on behalf of the community, President-General of Ngbo Town Union, Dr Emma Etu Odo, commended SEDC for adopting a consultative approach to development and assured the Commission of the cooperation of the 10 Ngbo autonomous communities.
Odo said Ngbo had faced decades of developmental challenges arising from the civil war and a longstanding communal dispute with neighbouring Agila community in Benue State, which he said was resolved only a few weeks ago.
He identified road infrastructure, healthcare, education, agriculture, markets and agro-processing as some of the community’s major development priorities.
“We want you to reconstruct the new Ngbo road, connecting all the 10 autonomous communities in Ngbo. We also want SEDC to assist us with the 10-kilometre road connecting us to our Agila neighbours in Benue State. That road can also serve as a gateway to Abuja and Northern Nigeria,” he said.
Odo also appealed for the establishment of a standard hospital in a central location accessible to the 10 autonomous communities.
“The entire Ngbo does not have a standard hospital. We only have poorly equipped health centres. When we are sick, we travel to the state capital, Abakaliki, for treatment.
“We want SEDC to build a hospital for us in a central place where all the autonomous communities can access it. We also need intervention in our schools,” he said.
As an agrarian community, Odo said Ngbo also required support for agricultural development, including an organic fertiliser plant and food processing and packaging facilities.
He further appealed to SEDC to expand and modernise Okwo Ngbo Market, which he described as one of the oldest rural markets in the former Eastern Nigeria, to boost trade and strengthen the local economy.
The SEDC delegation included Senator Anthony Agbo, Executive Director, Commercial and Industrial Development; Professor Solo Chukwulobelu, Chief Policy Adviser to the Managing Director; Chioma Nzewi, Head, Planning, Research and Statistics; and Dr Chris Uwadoka, Technical Assistant to the Executive Director, NRARD.
Also present were the Deputy Speaker of the Ebonyi State House of Assembly, Hon Chinedu Onah; Chairman of Ohaukwu Local Government Area, Eze Paul Ituma; traditional rulers, town union executives, clergy and other community leaders.
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