Governor Mbah Moves to Sustain Enugu’s Environmental Cleanliness

• Rolls out compactors, automated road sweepers, other equipment

Emmanuel Ugwu-Nwogo in Enugu

To sustain Enugu’s status as the cleanest state in Nigeria, Governor Peter Mbah Tuesday has rolled out newly acquired equipment for environmental cleanliness, saying that a clean city is a healthy and competitive city ready for growth.

Unveiling the new assets at the Old Government Lodge in Enugu, Mbah, represented by the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Prof. Chidiebere Onyia, restated his administration’s commitment to sustaining Enugu’s emergence as Nigeria’s model green state in 2025.

The Coal City State emerged the cleanest state and winner of the maiden Renewed Hope Model Green State Award in 2025.

The equipment unveiled to sustain the prevailing environmental health include 10 brand new waste compactors, seven automated street sweepers, and 200 modern dumpsters.

Mbah noted that: “today’s event is more than the unveiling of equipment” as it represents “a clear demonstration of our administration’s commitment to building the Enugu State of the future”.

“With the introduction of these modern equipment, we are strengthening the backbone of our environmental infrastructure and advancing a vision that places cleanliness, order, and sustainability at the heart of our development agenda,” he said.

The governor stated that keeping Enugu safe and clean was in line with his administration’s vision of growing the state’s economy from the $4.4 billion inherited in 2023 to $30 billion by 2031.

He said: “From the very beginning of this administration, we made a promise: to create a cleaner, safer, and more prosperous Enugu. A city cannot grow if it is overwhelmed by waste.

“Investors will not come, tourism cannot thrive, and the health of our people cannot be guaranteed. That is why environmental reform has been a central pillar of our governance strategy to grow our economy”.

According to him, the procurement of the equipment underscores his government’s belief in carving a path of doing things in a new way in order to achieve the best outcomes, adding that a major step forward has been taken in that direction.

Mbah explained that “the compactors will ensure faster, more efficient evacuation of waste across our urban centres. The automated sweepers will bring our streets closer to the standards of modern, well-planned cities around the world”.

He further explained that the 3,000-litre dumpsters “will help eliminate indiscriminate dumping and reduce the pressure on existing waste points”, noting that “beyond the equipment, what we are building is a system that supports the growth we envision for Enugu”.

“As we expand our road network, modernise our markets, attract new industries, and open our doors to investors, we must ensure that our environment reflects the discipline and ambition of a state on the rise,” Mbah said.

The Enugu governor enjoined the people to support the efforts of government in the environment sector as extensive reform was already going on at the Enugu State Waste Management Agency (ESWAMA), aimed at  strengthening its operational capacity and building higher standards of service delivery.

He stated that his administration was also investing in public awareness, “because no matter how much equipment we deploy, progress will only be sustained when our people embrace responsible waste disposal and environmental discipline”.

Mbah commended the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change as well as ESWAMA for demonstrating commitment to the reforms and transformation envisioned by the administration in the sector.

Earlier in his remarks, the Commissioner for Environment and Climate Change, Prof. Sam Ugwu, commended the governor for his commitment to environmental cleanliness and sustainability.

He recalled that Mbah had in 2024 signed into law the Enugu State Environmental Protection Law and also approved the Climate Change Policy and Action Plan, saying that those policy initiatives “have improved the activities of the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change”.

The Managing Director of ESWAMA, Richard Onaga, assured the governor that the agency would justify the government’s investment in the new assets, noting that the intervention has come at a critical time when population growth and urban expansion demand innovative and robust solutions.

“These assets will significantly enhance our operational capacity, improve efficiency in waste collection, and ensure cleaner streets across our urban and semi-urban areas,” he said.