What does development look like to an ordinary resident of Enugu State? It may be a road that cuts a journey in half, a school where a child receives quality education, a hospital where treatment is affordable, or a business that can expand because the cost of doing business has fallen. These are the outcomes that give public projects their real meaning.
These efforts deserve recognition wherever the evidence supports it. Under Governor Peter Mbah, Enugu State has pursued an ambitious programme of infrastructure development, fiscal reform and public-sector transformation. The scale of these initiatives reflects a clear commitment to expanding the state’s economic capacity and improving public services. The next opportunity is to consolidate this progress by demonstrating how investments translate into measurable and lasting improvements in people’s lives.
Building on Enugu’s development gains
In September 2026, the Enugu State Government unveiled a compendium reporting more than 10,000 milestones, including over 1,521 kilometres of constructed or reconstructed roads, more than 7,000 classrooms and 260 Type-2 primary healthcare centres. The figures indicate the scale of the state’s development programme and represent significant reported outputs. A useful next step is to complement these milestones with publicly accessible information on project completion, quality, functionality and the benefits delivered to communities.
The administration has also pursued the New Enugu City, the Enugu International Conference Centre, transport infrastructure and the revitalisation of state assets. Such investments can improve connectivity, strengthen public services and make Enugu more attractive to investors. Roads can connect farmers to markets and reduce transport costs; modern schools can create better learning environments; functioning healthcare facilities can improve access to essential services.
Building on the publication of development milestones, a more detailed public project register could provide residents with information on project locations, contract sums, completion status, quality inspections and operational performance. This would complement the existing reporting effort by showing not only what has been delivered, but also how investments are functioning and benefiting communities.
Revenue growth and fiscal sustainability
Enugu’s reported growth in internally generated revenue (IGR) is another important development. State government figures show IGR rising from ₦26.8 billion in 2022 to ₦37.4 billion in 2023, ₦180.5 billion in 2024 and approximately ₦406.77 billion in 2025. The administration has attributed the increase to revenue reforms, improved collection, reduced leakages and the recovery or optimisation of state assets.
This growth can create more room for infrastructure, education, healthcare and other public services. The composition of this increase also offers an opportunity to deepen fiscal analysis. The state’s published figures indicate that tax revenue accounted for ₦51.5 billion, or 12.6 percent, of 2025 IGR, while non-tax revenue contributed ₦355.2 billion, or 87.4 percent. Given the reported contribution of asset recovery, revitalisation and optimisation, a clearer breakdown of these receipts would help distinguish recurring revenue from one-off or time-bound proceeds and assess their contribution to medium-term fiscal sustainability.
How much of the increase represents recurring revenue, and how much comes from asset-related receipts or other sources that may not recur at the same level? What are the costs of collection, and how are the proceeds being deployed? Publishing these details, alongside inflation-adjusted revenue trends and information about services financed, would help establish the durability of the gains and support planning for recurrent commitments and maintenance.
The aim is not to diminish the reported achievement, but to ensure that today’s fiscal gains provide a dependable foundation for tomorrow’s services. A predictable and equitable revenue system, supported by transparent administration and public confidence, can strengthen the state’s capacity to sustain development.
Education: From infrastructure to learning outcomes
The Smart Green Schools initiative reflects an ambition to provide modern learning environments and equip children with skills relevant to a changing world. If supported by good teaching and effective management, these investments can contribute to productivity, innovation and social mobility. But a school needs more than an impressive building. It requires qualified teachers, learning materials, functional equipment, reliable electricity, safe facilities and adequate maintenance.
A May 2026 investigation by TheCable reported construction-quality concerns and incomplete work at some Smart Green Schools, including instances of roof damage and water ingress. These reports provide a basis for school-specific technical assessments to establish the extent of any defects, identify outstanding works and ensure that verified issues are addressed promptly. Such a process would protect the value of the investment and reinforce confidence in the programme.
Budget execution is also important. Available figures indicate that education budget performance declined from 61.3 percent in 2023 to 56.8 percent in 2024 and 49.1 percent in 2025. In 2025, against an approved education capital budget of approximately ₦282.98 billion, reported expenditure was about ₦129.48 billion, leaving approximately ₦153.5 billion unspent.
These figures provide an important basis for examining the relationship between budgetary commitments and implementation. Unspent allocations do not, by themselves, establish that projects were abandoned or that resources were wasted. Greater clarity on implementation constraints, procurement timelines, outstanding obligations and revised delivery schedules would help strengthen planning and support the timely completion of priority investments.
The government could publish each school’s completion and operational status, staffing, equipment and maintenance information. Independent technical certification would help ensure that defects are identified and corrected promptly. Literacy and numeracy assessments, alongside attendance, teacher deployment and pupil retention, would show whether facilities are improving educational performance. Existing public schools should remain part of the wider strategy, with resources directed to urgent needs across the system. The ambition should be a school system where modern facilities and effective teaching reinforce each other, giving every child a better chance to succeed.
The central question, therefore, is not simply how much Enugu has invested in development, but how effectively these investments are improving the delivery of essential public services. Healthcare, like education, provides an important test of whether the state’s development ambitions are translating into better outcomes for ordinary residents. This is where the next part of the conversation begins.
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Chiwuike Uba, Ph.D., CPA, FCMA, a professor of economics with a keen focus on public financial management and public sector reforms, serves as chairman of the board of the ACUF Initiative for Policy and Governance Ltd/Gte. He can be reached at chiwuike@gmail.com and via (SMS) at + 234 803 309 5266
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