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The Future of Benue State
On April 14 2007, Benue State elected lawyer and long-time National Assembly member Gabriel Suswam as Governor. With his template for progress in the state, a document entitled ‘Our Benue, Our Future’, the new governor promised to set the state on the road to economic development – and he has started the job with energy.
Despite the historically important role of the state in providing crucial food supplies for the nation, Benue has seen its infrastructure decline, reducing the efficiency of its agricultural system as well as diminishing the quality of life of its citizens. Immediately after taking office, the new governor took steps to address the most critical infrastructure shortfalls.
Rural accessibility was one of the major planks of the governor’s election programme, and the rehabilitation of the road network to improve transport and communications is underway.
In his first one hundred days in office, Governor Suswam was responsible for the reconstruction of 100 km of roads in Makurdi Township. The project has been extended to other towns in the state: Otukpo, Gboko and Katsina-Ala. Further planned developments in the state’s road network include the construction of six major roads and 28 rural roads across the state. The governor’s road programme garnered praise from Nigerian President Yar’Adua on his visit to Benue State, as well as commitments of co-operation between state and federal government for further road reconstruction.
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