The initiatives demonstrate the importance of collective action in addressing challenges that cut across state boundaries
By Mmesoma Onwuka
Gombe State Governor, Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya, has called for stronger implementation and accountability mechanisms within the North-East Governors’ Forum, saying the region must move beyond adopting resolutions to delivering measurable results for its people.
Yahaya made the call on Saturday in Maiduguri, Borno State, while delivering his opening remarks at the 13th meeting of the North-East Governors’ Forum.
He said the forum, established in 2020, had recorded significant progress in regional cooperation, particularly in infrastructure, energy, connectivity, trade and economic development.
The governor cited the rehabilitation of strategic roads, renewed efforts toward regional power development, improved connectivity, the revival of the North-East Trade Fair and progress towards establishing a regional airline as some of the forum’s achievements.
According to him, the initiatives demonstrate the importance of collective action in addressing challenges that cut across state boundaries.
Yahaya said the forum was established because issues including insurgency, banditry, cross-border crime, infrastructure deficits, energy shortages and the humanitarian crisis could not be effectively addressed by individual states acting alone.
He noted that six years and 12 meetings after its establishment, the forum had developed into an institutional platform with a secretariat, technical committees and sectoral groups responsible for implementing decisions taken by the governors.
The governor also highlighted the joint presentation of 17 strategic road projects, the Port Harcourt-Jos-Bauchi-Maiduguri rail corridor and frontier oil exploration opportunities at Kolmani and the Lake Chad Basin to the Federal Government in 2025.
He said the Federal Government subsequently commenced the rehabilitation of the Dikwa-Gamboru Ngala and Bama-Banki roads, covering almost 99 kilometres.
Yahaya further noted that the Akwanga-Jos-Bauchi-Gombe-Biu-Maiduguri highway had been adopted as a legacy road project of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
On electricity, he said the forum had shifted from individual state concerns to a regional energy agenda, with the Dadinkowa Hydropower Plant now supplying the national grid.
He also highlighted the revival of the North-East Trade Fair and the proposed N30 billion regional airline project, with each of the six states contributing N5 billion.
On security, Yahaya said the forum had transformed insecurity from separate state concerns into a shared regional responsibility, combining military operations with efforts to tackle poverty, unemployment, illiteracy, drug abuse and illegal mining.
Despite the progress, he acknowledged that challenges remained, noting that Boko Haram had been weakened but not defeated, while banditry and communal clashes were emerging threats.
He also identified the Mambilla hydropower project, railway connectivity, broadband infrastructure, the Kolmani oil project, solid mineral development, education and healthcare as areas requiring sustained attention.
Yahaya therefore called for a Results and Delivery Unit within the forum’s secretariat, a monitoring dashboard for federal infrastructure projects, a regional power master plan and stronger security and intelligence coordination.
He said the experience of the North-East Governors’ Forum could serve as a model for broader cooperation across northern Nigeria.
The governor disclosed that the Northern States Governors’ Forum was also being restructured to strengthen coordination across the 19 northern states, including the establishment of the Northern Nigeria Security Trust Fund and reforms to the New Nigeria Development Company.
Meanwhile, Borno State Governor Babagana Umara Zulum commended Federal Government interventions aimed at supporting recovery and economic resilience in the region.
Zulum particularly highlighted the One Billion Dollar Household Prosperity and Economic Social Protection Project, saying it could help vulnerable households rebuild their livelihoods and become more economically self-reliant.
He called for a deliberate transition from humanitarian relief to sustainable recovery, with returning displaced persons supported through access to housing, education, healthcare and economic opportunities.
Zulum also acknowledged improvements in the regional security situation, attributing the progress to the sacrifices of security agencies, the resilience of residents and the commitment of governments at all levels.