The Chairman of the Senate Committee on the South-East Development Commission (SEDC), Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, has urged the commission to extend its development projects to communities across the region.

He said residents in the five South-East states must feel the impact of the commission’s interventions.

Kalu gave the charge during an oversight visit by the committee to the commission in Enugu, where lawmakers assessed its facilities, ongoing preparations and operational readiness.

He expressed satisfaction with progress at the commission’s headquarters and commended its management for improvements since the committee’s previous engagement.

However, he stressed that the commission must look beyond its headquarters and deliver projects that address the needs of communities across Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu and Imo states.

Although he acknowledged that the SEDC was relatively new, Kalu urged its management to sustain the progress recorded and demonstrate its commitment to the commission’s mandate.

He also called on the management to maintain the pace of work ahead of another oversight visit scheduled for December.

During a briefing, the Managing Director of the SEDC, Mark Okoye, told the lawmakers that the commission had advanced preparations for strategic projects aimed at accelerating economic growth and improving infrastructure across the South-East.

He listed planned gas pipeline and railway projects among the initiatives under consideration. He also highlighted partnerships with federal ministries, departments and agencies, state governments, development partners and private sector operators.

Okoye said the commission was pursuing coordinated regional development through engagements with stakeholders across different sectors.

He described the South-East Vision 2050 stakeholder consultations as a major step towards establishing a long-term development blueprint for the region.

The consultations brought together government officials, business leaders, academics, development partners and civil society organisations to discuss priorities for the region’s future.

The managing director also highlighted the South-East Venture Capital Programme, through which 25 start-ups from the five states received equity investments following a competitive selection process.

He said the programme sought to promote entrepreneurship and innovation by supporting emerging businesses across the region.

The oversight visit also included a meeting with Enugu State Governor, Dr Peter Mbah, and inspections of the commission’s temporary and newly established headquarters.

At the temporary headquarters, the lawmakers examined office spaces and operational facilities to determine their adequacy for the commission’s administrative activities.

At the new headquarters, they inspected the office premises, furnishings and information and communications technology infrastructure to assess the facility’s readiness for full operations.

The committee said the exercise formed part of its oversight responsibilities to monitor the commission’s activities, assess its operational capacity and ensure accountability in the use of public funds.

The visit is expected to give the lawmakers a clearer picture of the commission’s infrastructure needs and its readiness to implement development projects across the region.

The SEDC was established to promote reconstruction, economic growth and regional transformation while addressing infrastructure gaps and other development challenges across the South-East.