South-South governors at the second South-South Governors’ Forum meeting in Calabar, Cross River State.
Governors of the South-South states have agreed to build a more integrated regional economic bloc, with shared infrastructure, investment and coordinated engagement with the Federal Government at the centre of the new agenda.
The decision was reached at the second South-South Governors’ Forum meeting in Calabar, Cross River State, chaired by Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri.
In a communiqué issued after the meeting, the governors identified regional rail development, seaport rehabilitation and the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway as key projects for unlocking the region’s economic potential.
The forum resolved to pursue the development of a regional rail network linking South-South states and the rehabilitation and modernisation of the Calabar, Port Harcourt and Warri seaports.
On investment and industrialisation, the governors resolved to adopt a unified regional investment strategy and consider the establishment of a regional investment fund to finance cross-border projects.
The proposal for a regional investment fund was advocated by the National Chairman of the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), Ambassador Godknows Boladei Igali.
The governors also emphasised the need to place young people at the centre of the region’s economic transformation.
The forum further agreed to engage President Bola Tinubu on critical issues affecting the region, particularly infrastructure and reaffirmed their 100 per cent support for his re-election bid in 2027..
To sustain the regional agenda, the forum resolved to hold meetings quarterly, with the next meeting scheduled for November 2026, in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.
Host Governor and Vice Chairman of the forum, Senator Bassey Edet Otu, said collective action was essential to unlocking the region’s potential.
Otu said the South-South had the resources and capacity to become one of Nigeria’s strongest economic blocs if the states could overcome fragmentation and work within a common regional framework.
Also speaking at the meeting, the Director-General of the BRACED Commission, Ambassador Joe Keshi, briefed the governors on efforts to advance regional infrastructure, particularly rail development.
The new agenda represents a shift from largely individual state initiatives towards an integrated South-South economic space built around shared infrastructure, investment and regional value chains.
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