By Steve Oko

Abia State Government has approved the establishment of an SME Village and Innovation Hub in Aba to boost economic growth and strengthen small and medium-scale enterprises.

The approval was granted by the State Executive Council and disclosed by the Commissioner for Information, Prince Okey Kanu, while briefing journalists at Government House, Umuahia, after the meeting chaired by Governor Alex Otti.

Prince Kanu said the SME Village would accommodate computer dealers, mobile phone sellers, repair technicians and related businesses, while helping to decongest areas of Aba affected by unregulated commercial activities.

He also announced that a one-stop Export Growth Lab and trade support facility at Ogbonnaya Onu Polytechnic, Aba, is nearing completion and will be inaugurated before the end of February.

The facility, he said, will ease business registration, NAFDAC approvals and other export-related processes, positioning Aba as a more competitive commercial hub.

“These initiatives are part of our deliberate policy to create an enabling environment for enterprise growth, job creation and industrial expansion,” he said.

On transportation, the Commissioner disclosed that the state will introduce electronic ticketing for its electric bus services. He said the ongoing free-ride pilot scheme, which began on December 22, will end by late February, after which commuters will pay subsidised fares.

According to him, the fare system will be distance-based, benchmarked against existing keke and mini-bus rates, and moderated by government.

“The e-ticketing system will eliminate cash handling and feature contactless smart cards, prepaid and pay-as-you-go options, with centralised revenue monitoring,” Prince Kanu said.

He revealed that within the pilot period, 106,116 passengers were transported over 74,796.6 kilometres, with 14 buses operating daily and carrying an average of 3,034 passengers each day.

Speaking also, the Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Transportation, Dr Obioma Nwaogbe, said the government is intensifying public sensitisation on the digital payment system, noting that vendors will be stationed at bus shelters to assist commuters, including the elderly.

She assured that the electric buses would operate on multiple routes without displacing existing transport operators, adding that orderly boarding and queueing would be enforced.

Special Adviser to the Governor on Media and Publicity, Mr Ferdinand Ekeoma, was present at the briefing.