Enugu State Governor, Dr. Peter Ndubuisi Mbah, is a man, whose success story as a maritime lawyer, financial analyst, and politician resonates.
Before his election as governor, he had excelled as the CEO of Pinnacle Oil and Gas Limited, which he founded, aside from engaging in other profitable domestic and international commercial ventures. By 1992, he was already strongly entrenched as a business mogul.
Before then, he served as Chief of Staff to a former Governor of Enugu State.
Mbah assumed office as governor of Enugu State on May 29, 2023. In less than a year, he has warmed himself into the hearts of the people with his spectacular leadership style, which thrives on action unhindered by bureaucracy.
Before his emergence as governor, scarcity of safe and clean water made Enugu an uncomfortable place to live for many people. During his electioneering, he promised to deliver potable water to Enugu metropolis and its suburbs within his first 180 days in office, if elected. That promise has been kept as parts of Enugu are now enjoying treated pipe-borne water.
At his inaugural Enugu State Investment and Economic Growth Stakeholders Roundtable held in September 2023, Mbah unveiled a $2.1 billion project plan covering transportation, healthcare, infrastructure, energy, power and agro-industrialisation. With this and many other economic programmes, he has set the ball rolling to grow the economy of Enugu State from a $4.4 billion economy to $30 billion in eight years.
He initiated and has signed the Enugu State Electricity Law, which domesticates the Electricity Act 2023, giving the state regulatory power to establish an Enugu State Electricity Market to attract investors to expand power generation and distribution across the state.
Within a short time, his administration has repositioned the state in its relationship with development partners, like the World Bank, AFD (the French Development Agency), and opened the door to new funding for projects.
The Mbah government has embarked on a full automation of all the key functions of the state government and has addressed the issue of fiscal energy and environmental cleanliness. There is a robust plan for a new Enugu City to allow for decongestion and rapid growth while providing real estate investment opportunities, as well as attracting investors from the Diaspora.
Governor Mbah has initiated to take over the construction of the international wing of the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu, with a plan to put in place facilities that would make it a cargo hub in the South East and South South. Also, he has undertaken to resume work at the abandoned International Conference Centre, Enugu, with the aim of making Enugu, on completion of the project, conference destination in Africa, among others. The Afreximbank President, during working visit to the Enugu State Government House earlier in January, endorsed Mbah’s prioritise and investment drive, assuring of the bank’s commitment to help the administration to fund and realise these key investment enablers.
Enugu State, under Mbah, has joined the World Bank Livestock Productivity and Resilience Support Project (L-PRES) to improve livestock productivity, resilience and commercialisation of selected value chains. Also, the state has joined the Nigeria for Women project by paying for counterpart funding for the project, which is a strategic long-term partnership between the Federal Government and World Bank to support the government’s goal of ensuring gender equality. This intervention will ensure the inflow of at least $10 million to Enugu State over the planned period for the execution of projects to boost the economic capacity of women in the state.
For making unassailable impression in governance within a short time, delivering his campaign promise and evolving strategic economic programmes that would boost IGR and create employment, Mbah is The Sun Governor of the Year.
