SEDC to drive industrial hubs, startup growth in Southeast, says MD Mark Okoye
By Kunle Sanni
The Southeast Development Commission (SEDC) is set to play a pivotal role in transforming the region’s economy through targeted support for industrial zones and innovation-driven enterprises, according to the commission’s Managing Director, Mark Okoye.
Speaking on Monday after a meeting with President Tinubu at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, Okoye highlighted the commission’s flagship initiative—the Southeast Regional Economic and Industrialisation Programme—as a cornerstone of its development agenda. The programme aims to provide critical infrastructure to support special economic zones across all five Southeastern states.
“All the states in the Southeast have aspirations for free trade and special economic zones,” Okoye said. “Mr. President’s directive is for us to leverage the SEDC to support these zones with infrastructure—opening them up and creating centralized industrial facilities that investors can plug into, rather than siting isolated factories in rural villages.”
He added that this approach would help attract large-scale investment, boost local production capacity, and create an enabling environment for job creation.
In addition to industrial infrastructure, Okoye unveiled the Venture Capital Programme—another strategic pillar under the SEDC. The programme will support the establishment of innovation hubs across universities in the region and launch accelerator initiatives to nurture tech startups.
“We’re working with the private sector to raise venture capital funds to birth the next Paystack or Flutterwave—this time from the Southeast,” he said. “This is about building the digital and creative economy from the ground up.”
Other focus areas of the SEDC’s multi-pronged development strategy include a Southeast Security Intervention Programme, a Housing and Market Development Plan, and a Sports Development Programme aimed at unifying the region and empowering youth through athletics.
Okoye noted that President Bola Tinubu expressed enthusiasm for the commission’s roadmap and called for its immediate implementation. “Mr. President was excited and gave us the green light to proceed. He wants the rollout to begin immediately—and we are ready,” he said.
