Abia State Governor, Dr Alex Otti, has directed the state Ministry of Environment to collaborate with the National Park Service and environmental experts to identify a suitable location for the establishment of a national park in the state.
If established, the proposed park would become the first national park in the South-East geopolitical zone.
Governor Otti gave the directive on Tuesday, August 11, 2026, when he received a delegation from the National Park Service at the Government House, Umuahia.
The governor said Abia has 19 forest reserves, with 18 currently available for consideration, stressing that the initiative would strengthen environmental conservation and protect the state’s natural resources.
Otti directed the Commissioner for Environment, Philemon Asonye Ogbonna, to lead a team comprising climate-change and environmental experts to work with the National Park Service towards actualising the project.
He assured the delegation of the state government’s full support, describing the initiative as timely and important to environmental sustainability.
The governor also recalled that he had earlier approved the identification and tracing of forest reserves across the state to determine areas suitable for conservation.
“Nature is something you cannot do away with. Sometimes, when you think you have overcome nature through technology, nature will still rise. That is why conservation is very important,” Otti said.
Earlier, Chairman of the Governing Board of the National Park Service, Dr Kingsley Ononogbu, said the delegation was in Abia to remind the governor of his earlier commitment to establishing a national park in the state.
Ononogbu noted that the South-East remains the only geopolitical zone without a national park, describing the situation as an omission that should be addressed.
He said Abia was well positioned to pioneer the establishment of a national park in the region, which, according to him, would promote environmental protection while creating economic opportunities.
The proposed park, he said, could generate employment, revenue and investment, while contributing to improved security and crime reduction in surrounding communities.
Ononogbu urged the state government to identify a suitable forest or game reserve for upgrading and work with the National Park Service to prepare and submit a formal proposal to the Federal Government.
The Commissioner for Environment and other members of the Abia State Executive Council attended the meeting.
