South East Zone of the Manufacturers’ Association of Nigeria (MAN) has aligned with Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu State government’s agenda of expanding the state’s gross domestic product (GDP) from the current $4.4 billion to $30 billion in the next four to eight years.
This was made known by the association’s zonal chairman, Mrs Ada Chukwudozie, when she led a delegation of the group to visit the governor in his office at the Government House, Enugu, at the weekend.
Chukwudozie who noted that manufacturers in the state and zone were keen on broadening collaboration with the Enugu State government in its quest to industrialize the state, said they would want to be carried along on policies that would better suit them as manufacturers and private sector investors.
She said, “We are very proud and happy that Enugu State has gotten it so well by electing you as governor. We know your antecedents and achievements in the oil and gas sector, your sound background as a lawyer, finance expert, and astute businessman. We have no doubt that you will bring your innovative and strategic way of thinking and principles to bear in the governance of the state.
“We have seen what you have done so far, and we have no doubt that they are steps in the right direction. We have come to align ourselves with your transformative agenda. You want Enugu State to be peaceful, secure, prosperous and highly developed,” she stated.
Mrs Chukwudozie commended the governor’s plan to identify areas and sectors of comparative advantage and to harness and optimize the natural resources in the state for the benefit of the people.
Responding, Governor Mbah expressed appreciation to MAN for acknowledging his background as a businessman and investor, stressing that nobody will feel the pain of setting up a business more than himself.
“As a private sector person, I recognised that most of my time was spent dealing with external factors, external issues. And I had always said to myself that if I ever had the opportunity to govern, I am going to ensure that we make life easy for business and private sector people.
“When we expressed our vision for the people of Enugu State, something that stood out was the fact that our strategy was going to be completely different from what had been obtained in the past. We proposed to grow the economy from the current level of $4.4b to $30b and a lot of that growth is going to come from private sector”, he said
Mbah promised that his administration was going to exceed the expectations of manufacturers and the private sector investors in the areas of the ease of doing, the ease of setting up businesses, registration of properties and obtaining construction permits.
