Abia State Governor, Dr Alex Otti, has inaugurated the Dr. Friday Kanu Ohuche as the Chief Economic Adviser to the State alongside members of the Abia Economic Management Team with a charge for them to bring their wealth of experience to bear in managing and consolidating the gains of his administration.
Dr Friday Kanu Ohuche, a seasoned development economist who specialises in the institutions of macroeconomics and growth, is also an international economic governance professional with expertise in public financial management, macro-fiscal policy analysis and management.
He previously lectured at the university level and has served in the Central Bank of Nigeria and the World Bank, among other institutions.
Speaking during the swearing-in ceremony, held shortly after the State Executive Council meeting at Nvosi, Isialangwa South LGA, Governor Otti expressed confidence that the team would contribute significantly to the second phase of his administration’s activities in the remaining two years of its tenure.
The Governor congratulated the newly sworn-in Chief Economic Adviser, describing him as a patriot who has attracted positive reviews and accepted to serve his fatherland despite numerous engagements.
“I also want to congratulate members of the Economic Management Team for making it to this august body. It is not an accident, it’s been a deliberate measure to fix a few things first before we now get into the economic management.
“Having now inaugurated this team, I have no doubt that you will bring your wealth of experience to bear so that our people would benefit from your contributions.
“I have no doubt that you will contribute immensely to the second phase of the activities of this administration in the remaining two years of this tenure”, he stated.
The Governor explained that his administration had focused on laying a solid foundation in its first two years adding that the time had now come to effectively manage and grow the structures already put in place.
“When you have not built, then there is nothing to manage. So we have tried to build in these past two years and it’s about time we now begin to manage the things we have built to achieve targeted results”, he said.
Governor Otti, who is the chairman of the Economic Management Team emphasised the centrality of the economy to the success of governance, noting that sound economic management remains the key to sustainable development.
He assured the new appointees that their contributions would be valued and taken seriously, stressing his readiness to rely on expert advice in steering the state’s economic direction.
“So yes, I’m the chairman of the team, but I would as always rely on superior logic from people who know better.
“You can rest assured that all the contributions you are going to be making will be taken very seriously and at the end of the day, our people will be very happy.
“And we know that we are going to deliver superior value to our employers, who are the people of Abia State”, the Governor noted.
Responding, the Chief Economic Adviser, Dr Friday Kanu Ohuche, thanked the Governor for giving him the opportunity to serve.
Dr Ohuche pledged his commitment, alongside other members of the State Economic Management Team, to ensuring that the good work already started by the administration would be sustained.
“With my colleagues here, we’re going to make sure that the good work you’ve started will be taken to another height.
“We shall rely on your superior experience as a top-level technocrat and a private sector player and also rely on your experience for these two years you’ve gained running a state and turning around everything to be able to build on that with the little knowledge we’ll be bringing”, Ohuche stated.
The Abia State Economic Management Team is made up of the Commissioners for Finance, Budget and Planning, Industry and SME, Trade and Commerce.
Others are; the Chairman, Board of Internal Revenue, the Chief Economic Adviser, Internally Generated Revenue, the Director-General and Chief Executive Officer, Office of Public-Private Partnership and Investment Promotion, the Special Adviser, Budget and Planning, the State Accountant General, the Director-General, Ministry of Finance Incorporated, the Principal Secretary and Chief Strategy Officer; as well as the Technical Assistant to the Governor.
