By Austin Ogwuda

Enugu—BARRING  any unforeseen circumstances, the implementation of a 20-year Draft Development Roadmap for the South-East and South-South, otherwise known as ‘DASESS 2035’, will commence on January 1 next year, President, South East/South-South Professionals of Nigeria, SESSPN, Mr. Emeka Ugwu-Oju, has said.

Briefing newsmen in Enugu, Ugwu-Oju said already “the final roadmap should be ready by December 2014 after additional consultation with stakeholders and implementation will commence January 1, 2015. Our vision statement is South-East/South-South to be the most prosperous and globally competitive region within the emerging MINT (Mexico, Indonesia, Nigeria, Turkey) economies by the year 2035.

“To us in the South-East/South-South Professionals, grassroots is just another level of development conceptualized as the beginning of an idea. We must always go back to the base.

“In a development economy like Nigeria aspiring to do great things by the year 2035”, he went on, “we recognize that our development has to be culture based, traditional value driven and people friendly. There will be establishment of a South East-South South Development Agency SESSDA, to monitor the progress of the Development Agenda South East/South-South, DASESS, 2035 Roadmap and to coordinate BRACED Commission, South East Nigeria Economic Commission, SENEC, Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, activities to create synergy.”

BRACED Commission comprises six states, namely Bayelsa, Rivers, Akwa-Ibom, Cross River, Delta and Edo.