The APC governorship candidate for Enugu state, Chief Uche Nnaji (Nwakibie), has said that the coalcity can only break away from the stranglehold of poverty and unemployment through solid collaborative governance with the organized private sector.
Chief Nnaji stated this on Friday, when he met with the business community at the Enugu State Chamber of Commerce Industry Mines and Agriculture, ECCIMA House, Abakaliki road, GRA, noting that “his optimism about Enugu state rising again hinges mainly on the quality of handshakes with the organized private sector, improved ease of doing business and the sustained stimulation of entrepreneurship and enterprise growth.”
Professor Martin Ike-Muonso who was at the event told JOURNALIST101 that the Guber candidate will address top challenges of the state.
“The governorship candidate identified the State’s top three challenges. The first is high rates of poverty of about 58% and an underlying poverty mindset, such as the admittance of Enugu state as a civil service state. The others are the deficient levels of industrialization and entrepreneurship, majorly responsible for the State’s high unemployment conditions totalling approximately 53%, with poor governance accounting for low levels of exploitation of our vast natural potentials, particularly in agriculture and agro-driven economic expansion.
Nnaji noted that “if the current government had paid adequate attention to the provision of entrepreneurship-supporting infrastructure, it would have been able to significantly cut down on the high level of poverty and unemployment conditions. For instance, capital expenditure as a share of the State’s total budgets consistently, albeit regrettably, shrank from 65.6% in 2014 to 31.5% in 2021, while the current expenditure, which used to be 34.4% in 2014, rose to 69% in 2021, making way for fiscal mismanagement and the heightening of poverty and unemployment.
Chief Nnaji pointed out his “determination to change this sad socioeconomic scenario by prioritizing the following: agriculture and agro-based industrialization, entrepreneurship growth and market access, particularly at the rural level, drastic poverty reduction and massive improvements in youth employment opportunities, highly improved water supply conditions, the revamp of the education and health sectors, sustained road infrastructure expansion and maintenance and an enhanced electricity generation.”
He vowed that his administration would “create a minimum of 590,000 jobs within four years from 16 sectors.”
Prof Ike-Muonso told JOURNALIST101 that the APC governorship candidate will unveil his manifesto next week, which will show extensive details of his approach to delivering on them.
“However, the seven pillars or backbone of his proposed transformation efforts contained in the manifesto are:
Massive Structural Transformation Programme [MAST-Programme]. The goal of the proposed MAST program is to expand agro and natural resource-based industrialization of the State rapidly. The focus on sex under sector growth shall indisputably result in the expansions of agricultural production at the primary level and increases in tertiary [services sector] economic activities.
OBD [Originate-Build-Divest] model backed by a N250 billion SEC-registered Enugu Development Bank. The OBD model is the financing framework of choice. The OBD model is a nondebt-creating financing arrangement complimented with a to-be-created Enugu Development Bank. Inferring from the above, the state government will only promote and initiate strategic transactions [programs/projects] sponsored or developed utilizing investor monies. It will divest immediately upon project completion.
Enabling environment [clean environment; Infrastructure, security, ease of doing business etc.]: Recognizing that entrepreneurial activities cannot thrive without an enabling environment.
“Chief Uche Nnaji’s administration shall prioritize the provision of public goods, security and the institutionalization of due process and the rule of law to ensure that our State attracts an adequate size of private, institutional, and other investors.
“Revenue independence: His administration is committed to achieving a 75% IGR/Total revenue ratio. Enugu state independent revenue currently covers less than 30% of its total revenue.
“Agriculture: To create and strengthen the Massive Structural Transformation efforts and the massive attendant employment, his administration shall turn Enugu state into the country’s cassava, maize and rice capital by substantially promoting smallholder out-grower scheme and access to farm inputs. To complement that, we shall also establish agro-industrial processing zones and small-scale industrial clustering, mechanization support & offshore fishing. The administration hopes to create approximately 75,000 jobs in this sector alone in the next four years.
“Establish and strengthen the Bureau of Private Partnerships [BPP]: With the Bureau of Private Partnerships, his administration shall continuously engage with the private sector, particularly in promoting and mainstreaming internship programs for women and youth.
N34 Billion Enugu Employment Development Trust Fund [E2DTF]: A three-year Trust Fund to provide financial support for revamping the creative and innovative energies of all Enugu State residents to grow and scale their Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).”
