The Enugu State Government has approved the distribution of free farm inputs to 63,000 smallholder farmers across the state as part of efforts to increase agricultural production during the 2026 farming season.
The State Executive Council also approved the recruitment of 4,698 additional teachers for the Smart Green Schools initiative and directed the immediate reactivation of all isolation centres across the state following the Ebola outbreak reported in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and parts of Uganda.
The decisions were announced after the State Executive Council meeting held at the Government House in Enugu over the weekend.
Briefing journalists after the meeting, the Commissioner for Information and Communication, Dr. Malachy Agbo, alongside the Commissioners for Agriculture and Agro-Industrialisation, Dr. Patrick Ubru; Education, Prof. Ndubueze Mbah; and Health, Prof. George Ugwu, said Governor Peter Mbah’s administration remained committed to delivering on its development agenda despite the ongoing political campaign season.
Speaking on the agricultural intervention, Ubru disclosed that the state would officially flag off the distribution exercise on Tuesday, July 21.
According to him, the programme has been expanded significantly compared to the previous year.
“Last year, about 40,000 farmers benefited. This year, it is even bigger and better, as the state has now approved for 63,000 farmers to receive free agricultural inputs as intervention, ranging from fertilisers to agrochemicals, free rice seeds, free maize seeds, and free pepper and tomato seeds,” he said.
He explained that the intervention was designed to reduce production costs for farmers, improve agricultural yields and enhance rural incomes.
“It is targeted at reducing the cost of agricultural production and ensuring that our smallholder farmers increase their income and improve their livelihoods,” he added.
The commissioner noted that only properly registered and verified smallholder farmers would benefit from the scheme.
According to him, beneficiaries must be identifiable, with their farms documented and subject to monitoring to ensure transparency.
“So, on Tuesday, 21st July, the governor will flag off the distribution of farm inputs. Thereafter, the 260 wards will receive theirs under strict monitoring to ensure that only those identifiable as farmers benefit from the scheme to better their lives,” Ubru stated.
On education, the Commissioner for Education, Prof. Ndubueze Mbah, said the approval of 4,698 additional teachers was aimed at ensuring that all 267 Smart Green Schools across the state meet the same educational standards already established at the model school in Owo.
He also disclosed that the government had intensified efforts to fully equip and operationalise the Centre for Experiential Learning and Innovation (CELI), located at the Enugu State College of Education (Technical).
According to him, the facility will serve as the training hub for teachers participating in the Smart Green Schools programme.
“Enugu State Government has further expanded and intensified its efforts to completely equip and operationalise the Centre for Experiential Learning and Innovation (CELI), which is situated within the Enugu State College of Education (Technical),” he said.
He explained that the centre would help institutionalise and sustain the Smart Green Schools project by providing continuous teacher training.
“This is a guaranteed strategy to institutionalise and ensure the sustainability of the Enugu education project, especially as it relates to the Smart Green Schools,” he noted.
Prof. Mbah added that the centre would ensure teachers adopt practical, skill-based teaching methods rather than relying solely on memorisation.
“This is a way to ensure that no teacher is left behind. It is also to ensure that every teacher in our Smart Green Schools passes through a thorough training programme at the centre and that they can effectively implement the type of education where our children acquire skills, not only memorise,” he explained.
He further said CELI would support innovation among young people in the state by assisting individuals with creative talents and patentable ideas to commercialise their inventions.
Speaking on public health, Commissioner for Health, Prof. George Ugwu, said the state government had decided to proactively prepare for any potential Ebola outbreak in Nigeria following confirmed cases in parts of East Africa.
“Because countries are now regarded as a global village and considering the fact that Enugu is now a gateway state receiving direct international flights, the state government has now directed that all the isolation centres established during the time of COVID-19 should be immediately reactivated and made ready for service so that we will not have a situation we did not prepare for. This is a proactive measure for a better state of response,” he said.
Ugwu also revealed that the Executive Council directed contractors handling expansion projects at state-owned hospitals to expedite construction work and complete the projects before the end of the year.
He identified some of the facilities as the new high-rise buildings at the Enugu State University Teaching Hospital (Park Lane), the teaching hospital at the State University of Medical and Applied Sciences (SUMAS) in Igbo-Eno, and other health infrastructure projects.
“For example, the new high-rise buildings at the Enugu State University Teaching Hospital – Park Lane, the teaching hospital at the State University of Medical and Applied Sciences (SUMAS) at Igbo-Eno, among others, are now to receive extra attention, while the Enugu International Hospital will be commissioned in a matter of a few weeks,” he added.
Also present at the briefing were the Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Dame Ugochi Madueke, and the Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Engr. Ben Osy Okoh.
