Nwifuru Inaugurates 15-Member Economic Committee

The Governor of Ebonyi State, Francis Ogbonna Nwifuru, on Monday inaugurated a 15-member Economic Committee tasked with steering the state’s industrialisation agenda.

The committee is chaired by former Minister of Power, Prof. Barth Nnaji, and comprises economists, industrialists, and technocrats. Members include Chief Ben Oka, Chief Mrs. Augustina Nwaoma Ekuma, Dr. Joe Abah, High Chief Ituma Chukwuemeka Enviable, Gen. Abel Obi Umahi, Chief Chibuike Orogwu, and Chief Dominic Nwibo. Others are Chief Elechi Innocent Ojiugwo, Anayo Omoke, Dr. Mark Abani, High Chief Ifeanyi Clement Okorie, Dr. Edward Nkwegu, and Mr. Mike Chukwu, while Associate Prof. Ben Uruchi Odoh will serve as the committee’s secretary.

Governor Nwifuru said the formation of the committee was aimed at addressing critical challenges, including power supply, solid minerals development, and the establishment of industries.

“We are badly challenged, that is why we say we must sit down and bring people to guide us. Our manifesto is christened the People’s Charter of Needs. We want to industrialise this state. We want to show the world that we have what it takes to do business,” the governor said.

He particularly urged the committee to work out modalities for reviving the moribund Nigerian Cement Company (NIGERCEM) and establishing an additional cement plant in the state. He also stressed the need for a functional salt production factory in line with Ebonyi’s identity as the “Salt of the Nation.”

Nwifuru added that Ebonyi remained the only state without the required energy capacity for industrialisation, expressing optimism that Prof. Nnaji’s experience as a former Minister of Power would help proffer workable solutions.

“We have created an industrial zone. You have the capacity to put an industry in this place,” he told the committee members.

Responding on behalf of the committee, Prof. Nnaji commended the governor for what he described as bold and visionary leadership. He pledged that the team would deploy its expertise to support the administration’s economic transformation agenda.