President Bola Tinubu has officially approved the establishment of the South-West and South-South Development Commissions, completing the framework for regional development commissions across Nigeria.
The Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, announced the approval during Wednesday’s plenary, highlighting the commissions’ role in fostering grassroots development.
“No mechanism is too much to trickle down development and dividends of democracy to the grassroots,” Kalu stated. “I am sure that with these development commissions, the impact of this administration will be felt by the grassroots. We thank Mr. President for completing it to the entire geo-political zones.”
Confirming the development during Tuesday’s Senate plenary, Senate President Godswill Akpabio disclosed that Tinubu had signed both the South-West Development Commission Bill and the South-South Development Commission Bill into law.
“Just to inform distinguished senators that Mr. President has assented to the remaining regional development bills, the South-West Development Commission Bill and the South-South Development Commission Bill. We now have all the developmental commissions legally in existence,” Akpabio said.
He further commended the President for his collaboration with the National Assembly and the anticipated benefits of the commissions.
“We thank the president. We are grateful for his cooperation. We are grateful for creating jobs. We are also grateful to have taken development to the grassroots level,” he added.
The South-West and South-South Development Commissions will be responsible for driving infrastructure projects, boosting economic growth, and improving social welfare in their respective regions.
The Senate had passed the South-West Development Commission Bill in September 2024, after which it was forwarded to the House of Representatives for concurrence. The bill was initiated by Senator Gbenga Daniel (Ogun East).
Similarly, the South-South Development Commission Bill, sponsored by Senator Asuquo Ekpenyong (Cross River South), was passed in October 2024 before being transmitted to the House.
With this latest approval, all six geo-political zones in Nigeria now have legally recognized regional development commissions.
In July 2024, Tinubu had signed into law the North-West Development Commission Bill and the South-East Development Commission Bill. Their governing boards have since been constituted and confirmed by the Senate.
