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•As PEBEC survey rates Enugu high
From Jude Chinedu, Enugu
Governor of Enugu State, Dr. Peter Mbah, has assured prospective multinational firms of his administration’s commitment to not only create an enabling business environment but also de-risk investment flow to ensure high returns on investment (RoI).
Mbah gave the assurances during the Second Existing Foreign Direct Investors Roundtable at the Aso Presidential Villa, Abuja. He noted that the state had curated multiple projects to bankability. The governor highlighted abundant opportunities and incentives across various sectors, including agriculture, tourism, manufacturing, mineral resources, logistics, aviation, real estate, and ICT.
According to a survey presented by the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Committee (PEBEC), Enugu State for the first time joined the list of states where multinational firms are more likely to expand. Speaking at the Roundtable which attracted over 90 multinational firms including Dow Chemical, Microsoft, the Nigerian-French Chamber of Commerce, the Nigerian-American Chamber of Commerce, the Euro Chamber of Commerce, the Indonesia-Nigeria Chamber of Commerce, and the Chinese Corporate Group in Nigeria, Mbah reiterated his administration’s ambition to grow Enugu’s economy sevenfold to $30 billion within six years.
He stressed that Nigeria’s economic growth would be driven by the sub-nationals, hence Enugu’s massive investments in infrastructure, security, and ease of doing business.
“For us in Enugu, we know that investment will not happen simply because we wish it to. We understand that we must work closely with prospective investors—not just to create an enabling environment, but also to de-risk investment flow.
“We have curated multiple projects across different sectors to bankability, meaning that if you are coming to Enugu, you will be presented with investment opportunities that already have full feasibility studies done. You can take these feasibility reports straight to the bank,” Mbah affirmed.
He emphasised that Enugu has seen a surge in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) over the past year due to the government’s proactive approach in working with investors to mitigate risks. “In some cases, we provide the offtake agreements they need to facilitate entry. Many companies have chosen Enugu as their first entry point into Nigeria. My job today is to assure you that Enugu is open for business. It is in our DNA to work with you and structure investments that make business sense,” he said.
Mbah also pointed to massive infrastructure investments, acknowledging that as a businessman, he understands that investors are not charities but are focused on returns on investment. To further attract investors, Mbah listed several incentives, including: The Enugu State Investment Development Authority, a one-stop shop for investors, presence of federal regulatory agencies in Enugu to facilitate approvals, Enugu State Geographic Information System Services (ENGIS), which has cut Certificate of Occupancy (C-of-O) processing time to just 72 hours.
“We will take up your application and ensure that you get all necessary licenses and approvals without delays.
“When it comes to construction permits and land titles, the process is seamless. In Enugu, applying for and obtaining your title document takes just 72 hours through our ENGIS platform,” he assured.
Mbah also revealed that he had recently signed the Land Use Regulations, which allow investors to track and benchmark service delivery timelines.
Meanwhile, Director-General of PEBEC and Technical Adviser to the President on FDI, Princess Zahrah Mustapha-Audu, presented an empirical study ranking Enugu among the states multinational corporations are interested in expanding to for the first time.
With these strategic reforms and investor-friendly policies, Enugu is positioning itself as a leading investment hub in Nigeria.
