Secretary to the Edo State Government, Osarodion Ogie (left); Governor Godwin Obaseki, and Managing Director of Siraj Nigeria Limited, Kamal Azar, after signing the consultancy service agreement for the Edo Regional Development and Benin Urban Master Plan at the Government House, Benin City…yesterday.

Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, yesterday, signed a consultancy service agreement with Siraj Nigeria Limited, for Edo regional development and the Benin Urban Master Plan. Obaseki, who spoke shortly after signing the agreement at the Government House, Benin City, said the plan would ensure a defined template for development and growth in the state. His words: “The signing of the agreement for Edo Regional Development Plan and Benin Urban Master Plan is another milestone. The last time an exercise like this was conducted was up to a generation ago.

“Majority of Edo residents today have lived without a master plan and that largely explains the seeming confusion and disorder in our physical space. Since 1918, we have had plans in Benin City, so planning is not new to us as a people. He said in the last 30 years the state stopped planning, stressing that the event was significant as it would to help to reconnect the past with the present. “We are prepared to put in more than 100 professionals in this exercise, so that we have more human resources to do the things we need to do. For us, these plans are very important.”

“Edo is growing at a rapid rate, but everybody cannot build a house in the city, which is why the regional plan is important so that we can plan for other major centers. “On the basis of this plan, we have to redefine land use and do it properly, so that we know the areas that we are leaving for agriculture, industries and residential areas, among others,” he added. Earlier, Managing Director of Siraj, Kamal Azor, said the plan was not just focusing on Benin metropolis alone, but also would also capture rural communities and villages with their peculiar needs.