ECCIMA To Partner Govt For Investment Drive

The Enugu Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (ECCIMA), has expressed its readiness to remain committed in the promotion of commerce and industry as well as collaborate with the various levels of government in boosting business and investment opportunities in Enugu State, South East and Nigeria generally.

Giving the assurance in his welcome address at the opening session of the 38th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Chamber, the immediate past president of the ECCIMA Sir Okechukwu Nwadinobi, expressed  happiness that international network and global collaborations was growing even as we are equally consolidating affiliations and partnerships locally, all aimed at impacting positively in our business environment”.

Sir Nwadinobi noted that  the Nigerian business environment is still beleaguered by poor state of infrastructure using official data from the bureau of statistics, he said that inflation rate is about 10.5% as at the last quarter of 2011. However, he noted that the micro economic indicators showed a growth rate of GDP at about 7.5%, just behind China and India”.

According to him, the unstable state of the naira, the fluctuating oil prices, the divisive tendencies and actions of the Boko Haram sect, with the abysmal state of socio-economic infrastructure are unfortunate mixed grill that are weighing down the real growth of the economy.      He said that  the nationwide strike embarked upon by NLC/TUC to protest the subsidy removal on PMS that crippled socio-economic activities within the period made the nation to lose about N720 billion”.

On the state of infrastructure in the South East geo-political zone, Nwadinobi remarked that it is worrisome and regrettable that no appreciable achievement has been recorded on the various infrastructural projects being executed particularly as it concerns road construction and rehabilitation of Federal Highways. The state of federal roads are embarrassingly, disappointing and are death traps to commuters”, he declared.

The Ex-ECCIMA boss also expressed total dismay that the rehabilitation of the Enugu-Onitsha road which began about two years ago, has only recorded very slow progress, lamenting that “The Enugu-Port Harcourt expressway , the Benin-Lagos Road of which the rehabilitation began about six years ago is in a state of anarchy as travellers have to spend abnormal hours to drive from Lagos to the South East and South – South

He reasoned that one of the greatest impediments to “our developmental growth and sustainability is lack of coordinated efforts and commitment in cultivating maintenance culture in our national life”, Nwadinobi also added.