Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu State is exploring a partnership with the Ministry of Art, Culture, Tourism, and the Creative Economy to highlight heritage sites in the state, such as the historic Milliken Hills and Iva Valley. He disclosed this during a visit by the minister, Barrister Hannatu Musa Musawa, to the state.
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The governor highlighted that these sites deserve recognition as global heritage landmarks. He stressed that Enugu State holds significant importance due to various factors, including its distinctive name, which means, “city atop the hill.”
Gov Mbah stated also that Enugu boasts the highest number of waterfalls and caves, with notable ones in Awhum and Iva Valley.
During the visit, the governor outlined his ambitious plans for the tourism sector, targeting an annual influx of at least three million visitors.
“We have some ruling hills and we believe that some of them are qualified as heritage sites. We also have the highest number of water falls and caves, with the most prominent in Awhum, where we hope to build a canopy walkway, and the Iva Valley, where we plan to do a zip- line as well as other tourism attractions.
“We have quite an ambitious plan in the tourism space. Our plan is to see how we can attract a minimum of three million visitors into Enugu for tourism, every year. This requires that we take advantage of the pool factors that we have in the state.
“We are also building structures that will inspire and incentivize tourism, like our state of the art International Conference Centre. The idea is to make Enugu state, the conference capital of Africa and attract all the tourism activities. In those various water falls and caves, we plan to create a new kind of experience for tourists and turn them into proper tourism sites. We are investing hugely and we are hoping we could also work with your ministry. We have the Miliken Hill where we hope to build a world class theme park. That is already being designed. The idea is to essentially, not only have that place recognized as a heritage site but also ensure that we build a world class theme park there”.
The Minister of Art, Culture, Tourism, and the Creative Economy, Barrister Hannatu Musa Musawa, expressed support for the governor’s plans and pledged collaboration with state ministries to boost tourism.
“I look forward to working with you. We are developing a comprehensive plan for every state and will collaborate closely with the Tourism, Cultural, and Creative Ministries to showcase what the Eastern region has to offer,” Musawa stated.
Enugu, the state capital, is renowned for its coal and iron ore mining, with additional deposits of limestone, fine clay, marble, and silica sand found across the state.
Oluchi Okwuego
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