*As Renewed Hope Ambassadors conclude media tour of Ebonyi State
The Presidency has expressed satisfaction with the progress recorded in key Federal and State Government projects in Ebonyi State, following the conclusion of the Renewed Hope Ambassadors Media Tour by members of the Presidential Communications Team.
Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga, stated that the team was impressed by the scale of development projects across the state, especially the Federal Government’s ambitious Trans-Sahara Superhighway, which connects Cross River, Ebonyi, Benue, Nasarawa, and Abuja.
He also commended the effective collaboration between the Federal and State Governments, citing federal interventions that complement state-led initiatives.
Some of the projects inspected in Ebonyi included the 22-kilometre Izeagu-Azulu rural road—connecting four communities with an eight-inch concrete pavement—and the ongoing construction of the state-owned Ebonyi Five-Star Hotel in Abakaliki, initially conceived as the Ebonyi Trade Centre.
The National Media Tour is an initiative of the Governor Hope Uzodimma-led Renewed Hope Ambassadors, organised in collaboration with the Presidential Media Team.
Onanuga applauded the Ebonyi State Government for effectively utilising increased federal allocations under President Bola Tinubu’s administration to drive development.
“The governor is doing very well. We have seen a massive improvement in Vanco Junction and the tunnel compared to August last year. The state government is constructing a 4.61-kilometre signature infrastructure corridor with a twin flyover bridge and an underground tunnel. Vanco Junction is taking shape, and what I saw today is a vast improvement over last year.
“We have seen the housing estate which will be given free to deserving civil servants and public servants, and now we are at the former trade centre which the governor has converted into a multi-storey modern hotel.”
Onanuga noted that the significant increase in allocations to sub-national governments under the Tinubu administration has enabled states like Ebonyi to undertake ambitious projects in housing, health, road infrastructure, and education.
“Well, this reflects the fact that the money that the Federal Government is giving the states is really working because the governor told us yesterday that in the past, after collecting FAAC allocation and paying salaries, he barely had enough money, about 100 million, 200 million to do other projects, but now you can see the states. Ebonyi state, in particular, is dreaming big and doing big things. The state is conceiving projects it would never have thought of before. It is doing those projects without having to go to the bank to borrow money,” he said.
He lauded the state’s investment in housing projects for civil servants, describing the initiative as a significant step towards improving workers’ welfare and productivity.
“You can see what Ebonyi state is using the money to do to develop their education, health, housing, roads and other infrastructure,” Onanuga said.
He particularly praised the Ebonyi State Government for its extensive rural road construction programme, which has improved rural connectivity, boosted agricultural activities, and enhanced access to markets and social services across communities.
The Presidential Media team also paid a courtesy visit to the Ezebrugbala III of the Ezzama Kingdom, His Royal Highness Eze Charles Mkpuma, at his palace, assuring the royal father of the President’s respect for traditional institutions.
The team thereafter inspected ongoing work at the Ebonyi State University of Aeronautics and Aerospace Engineering Science and Technology, slated for completion before 2027, and the ongoing construction of a concrete pavement road at Umougudu Oshia/NigerCem, which will serve as an alternative road linking Ebonyi with Enugu State.
Also inspected are the Elengvubu General Hospital, Ebonyi State University of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in Okperekpe, the ongoing construction of 140 Housing units of three bedrooms each built for displaced persons in Ameaze and Izzo communities in Ishielu LGA, as well as Kpakpaji Smart School in Ezzama Local Development Area and the ongoing construction of 88 Kilometre concrete road on the Enugu, Abakaliki, Ogoja Expressway handled by an indigenous contractor, Reinforced Global Resources Limited
