Ben Ezechime, Enugu
The President of 9th Mile Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (9ICCIMA), Enugu State, Ozo Leonard Ugwu, has described the Chamber as an industrial hub set to redefine the economy of the state,
Ugwu, who stated this while briefing journalists in his office at 9th Mile Corner Enugu, said the Chamber would open up businesses in the State as 9th Mile is a gateway to the South-East geo-political zone.
According to him, “9th Mile will be an industrial park where there would be a pool of graduates that would be trained in anti-ICT crime.
“They will partner with Enugu State Government with a view to adding value to the system.”
Ugwu, who is a Surveyor by profession further said, “The 9th Mile Chamber will partner with industrialists and entrepreneurs in Enugu West Senatorial Zone to bolster sustainable economic growth in the area.
“The chamber’s cardinal objective is to promote entrepreneurs and businesses in the zone in particular, the state, and the country at large through support.”
“Today, we have three City Chambers in Enugu State namely; 9th Mile Chamber, Nsukka Chamber and just lately we have Awgu Chamber.
“But of all these, we believe in 9th Mile Chamber just because by nature, 9th Mile is positioned to be Gateway to the entire Southeast Zone in terms of commerce and industry. And that takes us to why free trade zone was created within 9th Mile.
“It was commissioned in 2022, so 9th Mile Chamber of Commerce is blessed naturally and infra-structurally.
“It is blessed with a water basin that cannot be equaled to any water in West Africa and this is why all the beverage industries are rushing to be at 9th Mile.
“You can name them: the Nigerian Breweries, the Coca Cola, just that they have closed their administrative blocks at 9th Mile but their factory is there.
“The 7up and all other water bottles like the Mbaka and co, from Ugwu Onyeama down to 9th Mile, you cannot count the number of water industries that have come to be.
“You think of other infrastructure development, you think of access roads. It goes to the North, it goes to the East into Enugu. It goes to the South West and to the South-South and that is why it is called ‘Gateway’ to the South-East.
“With the coming of 9th Mile Chamber, we have come to harness all these private sector-government inter-relationships to have ease of doing business.
“We ask for more infrastructure to open up other centres like Ezeagu Local Government, Udi North, Udi South areas that link to Oji River. When these places are opened up, we will know when 9th Mile envelopes every other communities around.
“We want to build up 9th Mile the way it should be. Like Lagos, you cannot know boundary of the City centres and the rural centres as they all came to be fused into one.
“Going by the budget which Enugu State has just formulated and legislated, if they come to be, by next two years they will not recognise 9th Mile because the current governor, Peter Mbah, under three months of his coming to office supplied a daily running water to Enugu and that came from 9th Mile.
