RSG Plans $170m Mall …Seeks Private Partnership On Greater PH

A $170 million shoptainment mall has been earmarked for Greater Port Harcourt City, Governor Chibuike Amaechi of Rivers State has disclosed, as he sought for private partnership in the development of the new Greater Port Harcourt City.

Speaking at the first private sector business roundtable, tagged,” Charting a New Pathway: Strengthening Partnerships between Public and Private Sector’’ last Monday in Government House, Port Harcourt, Amaechi said the mall was tailored to replicate the city of Las Vegas ,a city known for its brisk business and luxury in the United States of America.

According to him, government was seeking a third partner in the mall construction to reduce fund problems and fast track the development.

He disclosed that infrastructure provision in the new city would commence this month, and noted that government was also planning to build a 1,000 bed hospital,” and so we will be glad you partner with us’’.

Assuring participants of government’s readiness to partner with them, Amaechi said,” we are working to provide a conducive business climate for businesses’’.

Apart from  the infrastructure, he promised that 24-hour power supply would be sustained with an independent gas power turbine, pointing out that already the state government had raised power provision in the state to about 445 megawatts and targets 715 megawatts in the coming years.

On what was being done to reduce the traffic problems in the city, he stated that two major roads to create outlets from the city had commenced. The roads include the M1 Road stretching from UTC Junction to the Airport, while another would run from Odili Road to link East-West Road at the outskirts.

On security, Amaechi recalled that prior to his administration, the state was in chaos, but stressed that the situation had improved considering the reduction in robbery, kidnappings and other crimes, while assuring the business community of more secured environment in the state.

Earlier in his remarks, Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Barrister Chuma Chinye said the roundtable had proposed to highlight existing business opportunities, expand emerging economic prospects and  strengthen government efforts to make the state a business hub in Nigeria.

In the words of Chinye,” Nigeria is not backward because of noble ideas, the challenge is implementation at sustainable levels’’, as he noted that the state was the first to commence such forums to pull its intellectual and natural resources to find ways to do things differently.