President Bola Tinubu has signed the South-West and South-South Development Commission bills into law, completing the establishment of regional development commissions across Nigeria’s geopolitical zones.
Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, announced the development during plenary on Wednesday, March 26, stating, “No mechanism is too much to trickle down development and dividends of democracy to the grassroots.
“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.”
Senate President Godswill Akpabio had earlier confirmed the president’s assent during Tuesday’s plenary, saying, “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 praised Tinubu for cooperating with the National Assembly, stating that the commissions would boost employment and drive development at the grassroots.
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“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 said.
The newly established commissions will focus on infrastructure development, economic growth, and social welfare in their respective regions.
The South-West Development Commission Bill, sponsored by Ogun East Senator Gbenga Daniel, was passed by the Senate in September 2024 before being approved by the House of Representatives.
The South-South Development Commission Bill, sponsored by Cross River South Senator Asuquo Ekpenyong, was passed in October 2024 and later concurred by the House.
With these additions, all six geopolitical zones now have dedicated development commissions. Tinubu had previously signed the North-West and South-East Development Commission bills into law in July 2024, with their boards already constituted and confirmed by the Senate.