Plan for Enugu State’s development through 2051 is taking shape as the government engages stakeholders on infrastructure, economic growth and sustainable development priorities.
The Enugu State Government has engaged stakeholders across different sectors to gather public input for a 25-year development plan designed to sustain economic growth, infrastructure and social development beyond the tenure of the current administration.
The engagement, held on Tuesday, October 13, in Enugu, was organised by the state Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning under the theme, “Stakeholders’ Engagement and Data Collection Exercise for Enugu State Development Plan.”
Participants included traditional and religious leaders, students, women, youths, farmers, labour unions, academics, business leaders, persons with disabilities and media practitioners.
Their contributions are expected to inform a long-term development blueprint that will guide successive administrations in the state through 2051.
The Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, Mr Chris-Roberts Ozongwu, described the exercise as a needs assessment initiative intended to give citizens an opportunity to identify priorities and contribute to the state’s development agenda.
He said the plan was designed to serve the interests of the people rather than a particular administration, stressing that public participation would be essential to its ownership and implementation.
“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,” Ozongwu said.
He added that successive governments would be expected to use the framework as a guide for development over the next 25 years.
Ozongwu also commended Governor Peter Mbah’s approach to governance, noting that the plan would cover all sectors of the state’s economy and provide a long-term direction for development.
The Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Mrs Onyinye Akubuilo-Okpalanma, said the engagement was necessary to identify development priorities and establish a framework for addressing them over the next quarter-century.
She disclosed that the exercise was supported by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and her office to ensure that the Sustainable Development Goals were integrated into the state’s development plan.
Akubuilo-Okpalanma said sustained implementation of development initiatives could strengthen Enugu’s position as a model for other states in Nigeria and countries across Africa.
The involvement of the UNDP builds on an existing partnership between the agency and the Enugu State Government. In February 2026, both parties signed a memorandum of understanding to support inclusive growth, institutional development, infrastructure investment and other development priorities.
The collaboration is expected to support evidence-based planning and align state development priorities with broader sustainable development objectives.
The Chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in Enugu State, Comrade Fabian Nwigbo, welcomed the stakeholder engagement, describing it as an opportunity for citizens and organised labour to contribute directly to government planning.
He said the process represented a shift from an approach in which governments developed plans without sufficient public participation.
“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,” Nwigbo said.
He added that the opportunity to contribute to policy decisions would help stakeholders express their expectations and participate in shaping the state’s future.
The stakeholder engagement follows the state government’s earlier announcement of its intention to establish a 25-year development framework that would extend beyond individual administrations.
At the 2026 Enugu State Global Goals Week Symposium in September, Governor Peter Mbah, represented by the Secretary to the State Government, Prof. Chidiebere Onyia, said the plan was intended to move the state away from development driven mainly by individual projects and administrations towards a system anchored on institutions, policies and long-term planning.
The framework is expected to provide direction for investments and policies across sectors, including infrastructure, education, healthcare, agriculture, technology, environmental sustainability and human capital development.
The ongoing consultations are intended to ensure that the plan reflects the needs of different communities and economic groups while establishing priorities that can be sustained by future governments.
The state government’s emphasis on stakeholder participation and long-term planning is aimed at creating a development framework that extends beyond electoral cycles and supports continuity in public policy.
The plan’s eventual impact will depend on how effectively the priorities identified through the consultations are translated into measurable targets, funded programmes and sustained implementation by successive administrations.
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