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“We Are Really Hoping that Other States, Including Those Around the Eastern Region, Will Learn From What is Happening in Abia” — Prof. Chima Korie
“We Are Really Hoping that Other States, Including Those Around the Eastern Region, Will Learn From What is Happening in Abia” — Prof. Chima Korie
…says “Many of us, including those living in the Diaspora, are really proud of you and what is happening in Abia Stat“
Imo-born academic and Professor at Marquette University, USA, Prof. Chima Korie, has applauded Governor Alex Otti’s transformational leadership, declaring that the remarkable progress recorded in Abia State has become a source of pride for Nigerians in the Diaspora and a governance model that other states should emulate.
Prof. Korie made the remarks during a courtesy visit by the 2024 Nobel Laureate in Economics, Prof. James A. Robinson, and a delegation of distinguished professors from leading universities in the United States to Governor Alex Otti at the Government House, Umuahia.
The visit, led by former Minister of Education and Health, Prof. Ihechukwu Madubuike, provided a platform for discussions on development economics, institutional reforms, leadership, and opportunities for collaboration between Abia State and the global academic community.
Welcoming the delegation, Governor Otti congratulated Prof. Robinson on winning the 2024 Nobel Prize in Economics, describing it as a well-deserved recognition of his immense contributions to development economics. The Governor noted that development economics remains the most important branch of the discipline because it directly addresses the issues that affect people’s everyday lives.
“Anyhow you look at it, development is all about input and output. A lot of times you do things that will lead to growth, but then, they don’t speak to development,“ Governor Otti said.
The Governor explained that his administration deliberately prioritizes policies that produce real improvements in the lives of citizens rather than pursuing economic growth figures that fail to translate into better living conditions.
“You can have empty growth; that does not affect development. A clear example is when you have economic growth, GDP growth; maybe 3% or 5% GDP growth, that may look significant, but when you have population growth of 10%, then clearly that growth is actually a decline because you have more mouths to feed than the food that is available,” he stated.
Governor Otti further emphasized that sustainable development requires breaking the cycle of poverty by tackling its root causes, including unemployment, poor productivity, and inadequate economic inputs. He added that while creating an enabling environment for investment and commerce is essential, government must also build the capacity of its people to take advantage of emerging opportunities.
He reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to evidence-based governance and expressed the readiness of the Abia State Government to collaborate with Prof. Robinson on research, policy development, and knowledge exchange to further strengthen the state’s development agenda.
Speaking on behalf of the visiting scholars, Prof. Korie, who recently reviewed the book Nigeria, a Crumbling State authored by Prof. Madubuike, said the achievements of the Otti administration demonstrate that purposeful leadership can transform governance and inspire confidence in public institutions.
According to him, if every state in Nigeria embraced the development model being implemented in Abia, there would be little need for books documenting the country’s governance failures.
“Many of us, including those living in the Diaspora, are really proud of you and what is happening in Abia State.
“We are really hoping that other States, including those around the eastern region, will learn from what is happening in Abia,” Prof. Korie stated.
The commendation reinforced the broader view shared by members of the visiting delegation, who described Abia as an emerging reference point for prudent economic management, institutional reforms, transparency, and people-centred governance. The visit also underscored growing international academic interest in the state’s development model and opened the door for deeper collaboration in research, leadership dev
elopment, and public policy.