Governor of Enugu State, Dr. Peter Mbah, has inaugurated the Enugu State Human Development Council as part of efforts to prioritize human capital development and eradicate poverty in the state. The Council, chaired by Deputy Governor Barr. Ifeanyi Ossai, comprises members of the State Executive Council, legislature, traditional and religious leaders, local government representatives, and civil society actors.
Speaking at the inauguration ceremony held at the Government House, Mbah reaffirmed his administration’s belief that the true wealth of any nation lies in the quality of its people, not its natural resources. He noted that over 50 percent of the state’s budgets for 2024 and 2025 were dedicated to social services such as education, healthcare, and skills development, underscoring the administration’s resolve to lift people out of poverty through deliberate investment in human capital.
Mbah said the Council was not just a policy body but a mechanism to measure, track, and assess development outcomes in key sectors. He explained that the establishment of the Council would help ensure accountability and performance by monitoring growth indicators, using baseline data to measure the progress being made in education, healthcare, and economic development.
In his remarks, Deputy Governor Ossai expressed the Council’s commitment to its mandate, stressing that all government initiatives, from smart schools to health centers and farm estates, are people-driven. He noted that measuring their impact is essential to understanding the value delivered to citizens.
The Chairman of the Enugu State Council of Traditional Rulers, Igwe Samuel Asadu, described the Council as a transformative initiative, commending Governor Mbah for his data-driven approach to governance. He said communities were already seeing the results of the governor’s focus on education and human development and that the new Council would help translate those achievements into measurable progress.
The governor charged members of the Council to be diligent, proactive, and innovative, emphasizing that their work would play a critical role in shaping the future of Enugu State through effective human capital development strategies.
