The Enugu State Governor, Peter Mbah, has earmarked ₦1 billion in the 2026 budget for agricultural projects in Owo, his hometown in Nkanu East Local Government Area, raising questions about equity and transparency amid the government’s failure to release the 2024 audited financial accounts.

According to the 2026 budget breakdown obtained from the Commissioner for Budget and Planning, Chris-Roberts Ozongwu, the allocation is intended for the establishment of 200 earthen catfish ponds, 100 tarpaulin ponds, and 100 greenhouse vegetable crop clusters in Owo. Critics argue that concentrating funds in the governor’s community, without publicly verified past accounts, may represent a conflict of interest.

The budget also outlines broader agricultural interventions across the state, including:

• ₦49 billion for new farm estates, despite abandoned estates in Adani, Ete, and Aguibeje;
• ₦27 billion for three Special Agricultural Industrial Processing Zones (SAPZs);
• ₦7 billion for tractors and farm implements to boost mechanised farming, continuing the 2025 tractor procurement initiative; and
• Plans for a tractor assembly plant in partnership with Danish firm ODK Group/Nortra Tractors, targeting 800 locally assembled units.

Additionally, ₦2 billion has been set aside for agro-inputs for the 2026 wet farming season across all 17 local government areas.

Beyond agriculture, the budget proposes ₦9 billion for a state-wide CCTV surveillance system and ₦10 billion for a government intervention fund, with details yet unspecified.

While the administration presents the budget as a commitment to agricultural development and state security, observers stress that transparency concerns persist, especially given the non-publication of the 2024 audited accounts. Civil society groups and finance analysts have called for independent verification of past expenditures to ensure accountability, particularly for projects concentrated in the governor’s community.

As of filing, the Enugu State government has not offered explanations for withholding the 2024 audit or addressed concerns regarding the allocation focus in Owo.