Anambra State Governor, Professor Chukwuma Soludo, has called for a coordinated and sustainable economic reconstruction of Nigeria’s South-East, urging the South East Development Commission (SEDC) to adopt a clear, results-oriented development framework to rebuild the region’s infrastructure and economic base.
He made the call at the South-East Vision 2050 Stakeholders’ Forum in Enugu, where political leaders, development experts and stakeholders met to map out a long-term strategy for regional growth.
Governor Soludo said the South-East must move away from fragmented development efforts and embrace a unified reconstruction approach capable of restoring critical infrastructure and repositioning the region for competitiveness. He noted that improved security conditions and increasing political cohesion among the governors of the region have created an enabling environment for collective development planning.
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The governor outlined three key pillars for the proposed strategy: strengthening regional security and establishing sustainable funding mechanisms; developing major cross-state infrastructure, including highways, airport runways, gas pipelines and seaports; and building a strong institutional framework to coordinate development across the region.
He observed that despite the South-East’s strong entrepreneurial culture, the region’s domestic economy remains underdeveloped, largely because much of the wealth generated by its people is invested outside the region. According to him, the Vision 2050 agenda is designed to reverse this trend and promote long-term economic self-reliance.
While stressing the importance of realistic and measurable outcomes, Soludo said state governments would provide strategic leadership, but added that significant funding would be required from the Federal Government and private sector investors. He appealed to President Bola Tinubu to support the initiative with adequate resources to drive lasting transformation.
In his remarks, Vice President Kashim Shettima described the forum as a foundation for regional collaboration and praised the establishment of the SEDC, noting the South-East’s critical role in Nigeria’s economic future.
Governors from Enugu, Imo, Abia and Ebonyi states expressed confidence that a unified development strategy would unlock new economic opportunities and improve living standards across the region.
Earlier, the Chairman of the SEDC, Emeka Nwogu, and its Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Mark Okoye, described the forum as a defining moment in the region’s development journey, thanking President Bola Tinubu for creating the commission to translate development ideas into implementable projects.
