Gombe State Governor, Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya, has challenged the North-East Governors’ Forum to move beyond resolutions and strengthen mechanisms that will translate regional decisions into measurable results for citizens.
Yahaya made the call on Saturday in Maiduguri, Borno State, while delivering his opening remarks at the 13th meeting of the North-East Governors’ Forum.
According to a statement issued by the Director-General, Press Affairs, Government House, Gombe, Ismaila Misilli, the governor said the forum had recorded significant progress in regional cooperation since its establishment in 2020.
He said, “The Forum was established out of necessity. The challenges confronting our region — insurgency, banditry, cross-border crime, infrastructure deficits, energy shortages and the humanitarian crisis — could not be effectively addressed by individual states acting in isolation.”
Yahaya said six years and 12 meetings after its establishment, the NEGF had evolved into an institutional platform with a secretariat, Technical Working Committee of Secretaries to State Governments, Technical Working Group of experts and sectoral committees.
He said the collective efforts of the six states had produced concrete results in infrastructure, energy, connectivity and economic development.
“One of the clearest outcomes of our collective advocacy was the joint presentation of 17 strategic road projects, the Port Harcourt-Jos-Bauchi-Maiduguri rail corridor and frontier oil exploration opportunities at Kolmani and the Lake Chad Basin to the Federal Government in September 2025,” he said.
The governor said the Federal Government subsequently flagged off the rehabilitation of the Dikwa-Gamboru Ngala and Bama-Banki roads, covering nearly 99 kilometres of strategic corridors critical to security, recovery and cross-border trade.
He added that “the Akwanga-Jos-Bauchi-Gombe-Biu-Maiduguri highway has also been adopted as a legacy road project of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.”
On energy, Yahaya said the forum had helped shift the conversation from isolated state-level concerns to a regional energy agenda.
“Today, the Dadinkowa Hydropower Plant is feeding the national grid. The new electricity law has also created opportunities for states to reform their electricity markets and expand renewable energy solutions, including solar power and mini-grids,” he said.
He cited the revival of the North-East Trade Fair in Bauchi in 2024 as another example of a forum resolution being translated into concrete action.
According to him, the region’s ability to pool resources had also been demonstrated through the N30bn financing plan, with each of the six states contributing N5bn, for the establishment of a North-East regional airline.
On human capital development, Yahaya said, “All six states have domesticated the Education Law 2022 and established the North-East Education Council,” adding that various state-specific initiatives were being implemented to tackle the Almajiri and out-of-school children crisis.
He also said commissioners of health across the region had established a regional health platform to strengthen collaboration, improve responsiveness and facilitate the exchange of best practices.
On security, the governor said the forum had transformed insecurity “from six separate state challenges into a shared regional responsibility.”
He said the regional approach combined military action with interventions addressing the underlying drivers of insecurity, including poverty, unemployment, illiteracy, drug abuse and illegal mining.
Yahaya cited community-based security structures, including GOSTEC in Gombe and the Taraba Marshals, as examples of initiatives from which states could learn.
He said the collective efforts of the forum had also helped change the national and international perception of the North-East.
“The regional conversation is gradually shifting from emergency humanitarian assistance towards recovery, resettlement, stabilisation and long-term development,” he said.
However, the governor warned that significant challenges remained.
“Boko Haram has been weakened but not defeated, and we still see attacks on our communities. Banditry and communal clashes are emerging as new threats,” Yahaya said.
He noted that many displaced residents were still waiting to return home safely and with dignity.
The governor identified the non-realisation of the Mambilla hydropower project, railway connectivity to the region and broadband infrastructure as outstanding priorities requiring sustained advocacy.
He said the promise of the Kolmani oil exploration project must translate into “actual production, jobs and revenue,” while the region’s solid mineral resources should be legally and responsibly exploited for the benefit of residents.
Yahaya also expressed concern over the persistent burden of out-of-school children and weak health indicators across the region.
Against this backdrop, he called for stronger implementation and accountability mechanisms.
“To speak plainly, our next task is to turn political agreement into measurable results. We must close the gap between the resolutions we adopt and the outcomes our people can see and feel,” he said.
He welcomed proposals for the establishment of a Results and Delivery Unit within the NEGF Secretariat, a dashboard to track Federal Government infrastructure commitments, a regional power master plan, a stronger security and intelligence framework and a focused portfolio of flagship projects.
Looking beyond the North-East, Yahaya said the region’s challenges were interconnected with those confronting wider northern Nigeria, including insecurity, poverty, unemployment, climate change, desertification, the out-of-school children crisis and infrastructure deficits.
He said the experience of the NEGF had demonstrated that sub-regional cooperation could provide a practical model for addressing challenges that cut across state boundaries.
“The Northern States Governors’ Forum is being restructured and its institutions strengthened to improve coordination, technical capacity and implementation across the 19 northern states,” he said.
Yahaya disclosed that the reforms included the establishment of the Northern Nigeria Security Trust Fund to provide sustainable pooled support for security and peacebuilding initiatives across the region.
He also announced plans to reform the New Nigeria Development Company to restore its role as a vehicle for investment, enterprise and economic development across northern Nigeria.
He stressed that the reforms were intended to complement, rather than replace, existing sub-regional platforms such as the NEGF.
“The past six-and-a-half years have proved that the Governors of this region can come together and agree. The years ahead must prove what our six states, working together, can achieve for our people,” Yahaya said.
The host governor, Babagana Umara Zulum of Borno State, commended the Federal Government for interventions supporting recovery and economic resilience in the North-East, particularly the One Billion Dollar Household Prosperity and Economic Social Protection Project, HOPE-SP.
Zulum said the intervention was significant for a sub-region that had endured prolonged insecurity, displacement, disrupted livelihoods and humanitarian dependence.
He said it could help vulnerable households rebuild their livelihoods and become economically self-reliant.
The governor stressed the need for a deliberate shift from relief to recovery and sustainable prosperity, with the return of displaced persons backed by access to housing, education, healthcare and economic opportunities.
Zulum also acknowledged improvements in the security situation across the North-East, attributing the progress to the sacrifices of the Armed Forces and other security agencies, the resilience of the people and the commitment of governments at all levels.