HARNESSING THE ECONOMIC POTENTIALS IN OMUMA LAND. By Mr Emmanuel Onyekachi Nweke

INTRODUCTION:

Before demystifying the matter at hand, it is important to delve into it anthropologically.

Omuma is a Local Government Area in Rivers State, Nigeria, with its headquarters at Eberi. Omuma was carved out from Etche and pronounced a local government in December 1996 by the administration of Late General Sani Abacha. It has an area of 170 km² and a population of over 100,366 at the 2006 census. Of course this number as it is today has (non-statistically) tripled to over 300,922. Omuma is made up of 10 wards, with 6 clans, namely, Eberi, Obioha, Umuogba, Umuajuloke, Ofeh and Ohimogho.

The postal code of the area is 512. Omuma is in the Rivers East Senatorial District alongside Etche, Ikwerre, Obio/Akpor, Port Harcourt, Okrika, Ogu/Bolo and Emohua Local Government areas. Omuma Local Government Area also forms a federal constituency with Etche Local Government Area.

ECONOMIC POTENTIALS OF OMUMA

Omuma by natural default is agrarian. Omuma can be said to be a city in the centre of a virgin forest. Virgin in the sense that its economic hymen is still intact. Omuma is amphibiously bordered with some of our villages in islands. This again makes it rich in aquatic gains. The ever green grass across the length and breadth of the land makes it a natural herbivore for herbivorous animals. It is blessed with thick and light forests harboring the best of all insects, wild life and timber.

Omuma sits in the exit and entrance of Rivers state, sharing borders with Abia State, and our neighboring brothers, Etche who also shares borders with Imo state. This positions Omuma as a viable market junction for the commerce of goods and services. Omuma is an oil bearing community. The spanning and drilling of oil in the Umuakali axis and its horizontal, clandestine, usurpation across the rich quorah of our land leaves a lot to be desired. Omuma has an undiluted culture of communality and hospitality.

It is blessed with the native mechanism of dispute resolution. Its youths, elders are peaceful in conduct and in disposition at least, comparatively speaking. It is the only local government that has gates in all its adjoining borders in the four cardinal flanks.

Some Unharnessed Economic Potentials in Omuma:

From the foregoing, there is no gainsaying that Omuma is roundly blessed though latently. Let us look at some of the economic potentials that Omuma sons and daughters, investors, the local government council, state and federal government can embark on to change the wealth narrative of our land.

i. Bee Farming and Keeping: Due to our large expanse of bushes and forests bee farming and keeping will flourish. Our forest or bushes can provide a comfortable apiary or bee yard for bee keeping and farming. Natural and synthesized bees are possible in our type of environment.

ii. Cassava and Yam Plant: Over 20 food staples are derived from cassava in Nigeria and 28 from yam. Yam is grown on free draining, sandy and fertile soil, after clearing the first fallow. Our Omuma land is naturally fertilized. Investors in the supply chain of cassava and yam will find our land useful as there is minimal hassle to the raw material.

iii. Oil Servicing and Exploration: The Omuma oil should be drilled openly and Omuma should be duly recognized as Oil Producing Area.

iv. Timber Market: In the narrow sense of the terms, wood, forest, forestry and timber/lumber industry appear to point to different sectors, in the industrialized, internationalized world, there is a tendency toward huge integrated businesses that cover the complete spectrum from silviculture and forestry. Omuma land is a moist ground for timber generation and reformation. Attendant companies to these line of business should be encouraged to our land.

v. Sculpture and mud making: Omuma can easily pass as an Arts village and consequently attract tourism. We have the natural sites for mud and sculpture molding and arts/paints will not be difficult to thrive.

vi. Palm Fruits: Palm fruit that we sell to the Ibibios should have long time ago stopped or minimized if we understand how much they make from us. Our young ones can leverage on the supply chain of palm fruits, palm oil to create companies and become palm oil exporting local government area in Nigeria.

vii. Fruits and vegetables: Our fruits are as fresh as the morning dew. Our ‘ugu’, okro, grow as if stretching for a pleasant tall to the sky without fertilizer.

viii. Zoo: Rivers state has only one zoo. Our non-arid land can favour the siting of another zoo to preserve the wild life in our forests as well as attract investors and tourists.

ix. Manpower: Omuma has virtually professionals in all facets of human endeavor. High level manpower for personnel resource in any investment will not be a problem.
This is closely linked to our educational opportunities. Omuma has one of the largest secondary schools in Rivers State (G.S.S. Eberi).

This school can serve as facilitation centre for NTI to cover Abia and Etche. The school also has the potential to be migrated to a higher institution; since it is within a safe, serene environment suitable for teaching and learning. The other secondary schools, C. S.S. Umuogba, C. S. S. Amaj have the potential for a face-lift and even upgrade to having hostel facilities.

CONCLUSION :

It is the responsibility of all to create wealth. Putting our eggs in one basket of politics could be harmful. Our leaders can think outside the box. We can create order in disorder. We can be the richest local government area in Rivers State and beyond if we want to.

RECOMMENDATIONS:

This paper having looked at the various economic potentials in our land recommends thus:

• That the local government council should as a matter of urgency create ‘economic council’ to be manned by our notable sons and daughters.

• Create or adopt this paper and upload to internet for the world to know about us.

Nde Omuma nu kaa-nkaa-oo
Nu chikaa-oo
Rivers State nu chikaa
Nigeria nde wo-oo