Nasarawa was least endowed in 1996, now development hub — Jega - Punch Newspapers

Former INEC National Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega delivering a lecture during the Nasarawa State @ 30 Colloquium on Wednesday in Lafia.. CREDIT: Collins Agwam

A former Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof. Attahiru Jega, has commended the Nasarawa State Government, stakeholders and residents for moving from foundation to transformation in 30 years, despite starting as the least endowed among the states created in 1996. Jega stated this at the Nasarawa @30 Colloquium held on Wednesday in Lafia, the state capital, while speaking on the topic, “Nasarawa State @ 30: From Foundation to Transformation.” He noted that when Nasarawa was created on October 1, 1996, the state started with only one tarred road, no water board and no secretariat, and with Internally Generated Revenue contributing only 3.7 per cent to its budget in 1997, which has now improved to 11 per cent. The former INEC chairman traced the state’s history from Nasarawa Province in 1902, to Plateau Province in 1926, to Benue-Plateau in 1967, and finally to its creation on October 1, 1996, alongside Bayelsa, Ebonyi, Ekiti, Gombe and Zamfara states. He said, “It is significant to note that the newly created state, Nasarawa State, like all the others created at the same time, was not given any take-off grant. And of the six states, Nasarawa State started with the least infrastructure and readily available resources. Bayelsa had oil; Ebonyi and Abakaliki had rice mills; Ekiti had a university; and Gombe also had what it inherited.See more Punch stories on Google.Add Punch on Google “But Nasarawa State, as former Governor Abdullahi Adamu once said, started with, I quote, ‘one tarred road, no water board, and no secretariat.’ It became one of the most predominantly rural states with little, if any, internally generated revenue and was heavily reliant, almost solely, on Federation Account allocations for its budget and development needs. Let Nigerians’ votes count in 2027, Kingibe urges INEC Why I sued Abia NDC over Senate ticket – Aspirant 2027: NDC rejects INEC plan to deploy AI “For example, in 1997, internally generated revenue contributed only 3.7% to the budget of Nasarawa State. Currently, it has gone up to at least 11%, which is, I think, a significant improvement over time, given the way in which the state started.” Jega commended all the governors since the creation of the state for putting in great efforts that had elevated the state from how it started to becoming an investment destination in the country. He added, “I can say without fear of contradiction that Governor Abdullahi Sule’s record in seven years is transformational – from urban renewal to health, agriculture, education and most importantly industrialisation and mining,” he said. He further called on future leaders to champion inclusive governance, balanced development, infrastructure, digital expansion, health, mining and skills acquisition for women and youths. “I have mentioned what His Excellency, the former governor, stated about ‘only one tarred road.’ But the estimated kilometres in 1996 was between 200 and 300 kilometres. As we speak now in 2026, Nasarawa State has 1,500 kilometres of tarred roads – the total for the state and the federal, of course. But what is significant to also note is 639 kilometres were done in the past seven years by Governor Abdullahi Sule,” he emphasised. On his part, the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Most Rev. Matthew Kukah, blamed poor management of diversity for persistent poverty and disunity, saying Nigeria has enough resources to meet citizens’ needs but not enoug Collins Agwam

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