By TINA TIMOTHY

Foundation for Environmental Rights, Advocacy & Development (FENRAD) Nigeria has commended the Abia State Governor, Alex Chioma Otti on the recent signing of the Greater Ohafia Development Authority bill.

Describing Otti’s commitment to building infrastructural projects as well as his desire to accelerate the spread of even development in all parts of Abia, FENRAD, in a statement issued on Tuesday, November 19, 2024 by its Executive Director, Comrade Nelson Nnanna Nwafor, described the move “as a vehicle to drive development and growth in the Ohafia and Abia North axis spreading to communities in Bende LGA, Isuikwuato, and to Arochukwu.”

“Foundation for Environmental Rights Advocacy, and Development, FENRAD, a pro-democracy and environmental rights advocacy group in Abia State lauds and commends His Excellency Governor Alex Chioma Otti on the recent signing of the Greater Ohafia Development Authority as a vehicle to drive development and growth in the Ohafia and Abia North axis spreading to communities in Bende LGA, Isuikwuato, and to Arochukwu.

“The Foundation recalls when in a bid to map development and ensure efficiency in resource allocation, the old Eastern Region established in the early 1960s the Eastern Nigeria Development Board under whose watch the East became the fastest growing economy and a model. The fact that a similar development authority bill was signed into law by the governor initially shows commitment to building infrastructural projects in the state. And now the same has been done in Abia North with a board set up to monitor implementation, Governor Alex Otti has shown a desire to accelerate the spread of even development in all parts of Abia; nothing can be more inclusive.

“After Aba and Umuahia, Ohafia ranks next as a major city in Abia State yet has suffered neglect and abandonment for years. It has been promised after promise with no record to show for it in Ohafia. Yet, the town is vital to unlocking the Abia agricultural potential and boosting productivity in an era when food insecurity has become a nationwide plague. Such a development master plan, once in full operation, will improve communication and add more to the value chain lifting many out of poverty. This emphasises how result-oriented a project of this scale could be if well managed,” FENRAD stated.

While calling on the state government to match words with actions, the Foundations also urged the Ohafia Local Government Authority to “tag along and join the initiative so as to enable development to cascade down to the locals evenly.”

“The Foundation calls on the state government of the day to ensure that words are matched with actions in the area of critical state infrastructure which is core to rural-urban overlap, spatial and sectoral links. It is only through rapid infrastructure provision that local industries could be fed local raw materials; this underscores how chiefly important this project is.

“Having stated this, the Foundation calls on the Ohafia Local Government Authority to tag along and join the initiative so as to enable development to cascade down to the locals evenly. While saluting the state government for this bold initiative, the Foundation urges the government of the day to develop and design a template or master plan that details project phases, and as well to carry out needs assessment so as to ascertain the basic needs of the people in order to narrow gaps in infrastructural needs,” FENRAD added.