Gideon Arinze in Enugu

President Bola Tinubu has reaffirmed his commitment to industrialising the South-east, declaring that the region must move beyond promises to tangible economic development.

Tinubu spoke on Tuesday in Enugu at the launch of the South-east Gas Distribution Pipeline Infrastructure Project, an initiative of the South East Development Commission (SEDC), through the Southeast Investment Company (SEIC).

The project, launched in partnership with Gas Sync and NNPC Gas Marketing Limited (NNPC NGML), proposes a 400-kilometre pipeline network connecting the ANOH Gas Processing Plant in Imo State to major industrial and commercial centres across the five South-east states.

The pipeline is expected to improve energy access, attract investments and stimulate regional economic growth.

Represented by the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, the president said the project responded to the need for reliable energy infrastructure to support businesses and manufacturing in the region.

He called on investors, industrialists and manufacturers to explore the South-east’s economic opportunities, noting that energy security remained a key commitment of his administration under the Renewed Hope Agenda.

“Energy infrastructure will reduce costs, create jobs and expand opportunities. Nigeria has substantial gas resources, and the South-east has its fair share, but we must use them to create jobs and prosperity for our people,” he said.

Tinubu said manufacturers should not have to spend more on generating electricity than expanding their businesses, stressing the need for infrastructure that supports enterprise and industrial production.

“The prosperity of the region is inseparable from the prosperity of the entire country. We cannot achieve our full economic potential when any region operates below its economic potential,” he said.

In his address, Enugu State Governor, Peter Mbah, said inadequate energy supply and poor connectivity had remained major challenges to industrial development in the South-east.

According to him, unreliable energy increases production costs, limits business expansion and weakens the competitiveness of enterprises across the region.

Mbah said the proposed pipeline would provide opportunities for young people to build businesses and secure employment within the region rather than travel elsewhere in search of jobs.

“Enugu State alone has more than 20 tertiary institutions graduating young people annually,” he said. Reliable energy would help them turn their ideas into viable enterprises.”

 “Enugu alone has four gas fields that remain unexploited. This shows the massive opportunities we have, and we also have reserves in other states. We cannot wait to see the project become a reality,” Mbah said.

The governor commended Tinubu for supporting the establishment of the SEDC, describing the commission as an important step towards addressing the region’s industrial development needs.

Earlier, the Managing Director of the SEDC, Mark Okoye, said the commission was committed to promoting inclusive prosperity and creating economic development opportunities across the region.

Okoye also proposed the establishment of a South-east Oil and Gas Week to bring stakeholders together to discuss investment opportunities and challenges in the sector.

The Deputy Governors of Ebonyi, Anambra and Imo States, Princess Patricia Onyemaechi, Dr Gilbert Ibezim and Chinyere Ihuoma, respectively, commended the SEDC for initiating the project. 

They pledged their states’ cooperation to ensure its successful implementation.