By Izunna Okafor, Awka
Barely one week after his reappointment by Governor Chukwuma Charles Soludo as the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Awka Capital Territory Development Authority (ACTDA), Dr. Ossy Onuko has declared the commencement of a new operational phase for the agency, unveiling what he described as “ACTDA 2.0.”
Onuko made the declaration on Wednesday during a one-day strategic staff retreat organized by the Authority in Awka, the Anambra State capital, as part of efforts to reposition the agency for greater efficiency, professionalism and stronger regulatory impact in the state capital territory.
Themed: “Planning, Development, and Regulatory Compliance”, the retreat, which held at the Hilton Leisure Hotel, Awka, brought together Management staff, technical experts, urban development professionals and resource persons from different sectors, with deliberations centred on planning, development and regulatory compliance.
Speaking at the event, the ACTDA Boss said the retreat signalled the beginning of a renewed vision and a more result-oriented operational culture within the Authority.
According to him, the agency was entering a fresh phase that would demand greater commitment, innovation, discipline and improved performance from every member of staff.
“We are changing gears. This is ACTDA 2.0,” Onuko declared, while urging workers of the Authority to embrace the new vision with more seriousness and renewed energy.
He explained that the retreat was deliberately designed to expose staff to fresh ideas, practical knowledge and modern strategies capable of strengthening the agency’s mandate in physical planning, development control and urban management.
The ACTDA CEO further emphasized the need for continuous learning and institutional reforms, noting that sustainable urban development cannot be achieved without a knowledgeable and forward-thinking workforce.
According to him, although the programme was compressed into a one-day event without compromising on its taste and quality, it was originally conceived as a much longer strategic engagement because of its importance to the future direction of the Authority.
He further charged the staff to pay close attention to the lectures and technical sessions, stressing that the goal was to achieve exponential improvement in ACTDA’s performance within the next four years.
Speaking further, Dr. Onuko reaffirmed ACTDA’s alignment with the urban renewal vision of the Chukwuma Charles Soludo administration, noting that his reappointment by the Governor came with renewed responsibility and greater expectations to deepen the transformation already taking shape across the Awka Capital Territory. He said the ongoing infrastructural expansion, environmental reforms, road development projects, and increasing drive for orderliness within the capital city were clear indicators that the Solution Government remained committed to building a modern, organized, investor-friendly and globally-competitive capital territory.
According to him, ACTDA under his leadership would continue to key fully into that vision through stronger enforcement, improved planning systems, strategic partnerships, and people-oriented policies capable of giving Awka the structure and outlook befitting of a fast-growing state capital.
Delivering the keynote address at the retreat, renowned town planning expert and former Lagos State Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Tpl. Olutoyin Ayinde, emphasized the importance of strict regulatory compliance and sustainable urban planning practices in modern city development.
Ayinde, who is also a former President of the Nigerian Institute of Town Planners and Second Deputy President of the Association of Professional Bodies of Nigeria, stressed that effective city management must be people-oriented, environmentally conscious and inclusive of all relevant stakeholders, including operators within the informal sector.
He also highlighted the dangers of weak development control systems and unregulated urban expansion, while calling for stronger institutional enforcement and professionalism in physical planning administration.
In his own presentation titled “Organizational Leadership: Keys Needed to Effectively Execute a Vision,” the Chief Executive Officer of Petros Global Enterprises Ltd., Mr. Peter Nwokoye, commended the visible infrastructural transformation currently ongoing in Awka and other parts of Anambra State.
He specifically praised the commitment and leadership style of the ACTDA Management, while encouraging the agency to sustain the momentum and strategically expand its interventions for greater impact.
Drawing lessons from Singapore’s post-independence transformation, Nwokoye noted that visionary leadership, institutional discipline, education, technology, and strategic economic planning played major roles in transforming the Asian country into a global model of development.
Also speaking during the retreat, urban development and city coordination expert, Kabiu Mohammad, disclosed that Awka had been selected as one of the beneficiary cities under the African Cities Programme of the African Development Bank (AfDB), making it the first Nigerian city to benefit from the programme.
According to him, the initiative is aimed at supporting major urban infrastructure and city development projects across selected African cities.
He explained that Awka’s inclusion in the programme positions the Anambra capital for significant infrastructural and urban transformation, adding that preliminary processes, including stakeholder engagement, city profiling and data gathering, were already underway through a technical committee established for the programme.
On his part, public relations and brand development specialist, Mazi Ejimofor Opara, who spoke on “Effective Public Engagement and Media Management,” stressed the importance of strategic communication and proper stakeholder engagement in public service administration.
He urged ACTDA to deliberately strengthen and control its communication channels, warning that institutions that fail to tell their own stories risk being misunderstood or negatively told by others.
According to him, effective communication remains central to public trust, institutional reputation and successful policy implementation.
The speakers and participants at the event, while hailing the initiative, expressed optimism and confidence that both ACTDA and the Awka capital territory would ride on a much higher pedestal this time; even as the retreat also re-emphasized the need to embrace innovation, professionalism, discipline, teamwork, and continuous learning as critical tools for achieving the new performance targets envisioned under the Onuko’s “ACTDA 2.0” agenda.
More photos from the event:
