The Anambra State Government has disclosed that 5,775 buildings are expected to be affected by demolition to make way for a proposed six-lane road along the Second Niger Bridge corridor in Nkwele-Ezunaka, Oyi Local Government Area of the state.
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The Commissioner for Works, Arc. Okey Ezeobi, disclosed this at the 2026 Annual General Meeting of the Anambra State Chapter of the Nigerian Institute of Architects held in Awka.
Speaking on the theme, “From Vision to Legacy: Planning, Innovation and Inclusive Development for a Livable Environment,” Ezeobi said the scale of the proposed demolition underscored the consequences of inadequate long-term planning.
According to him, proper planning is essential to creating a successful and liveable environment, warning that when communities develop without effective master plans, residents eventually bear the consequences.
“If there were a proper master plan, the people would not have to be paying such big price; but today, our people are paying the price because there was no planning,” he said.
Ezeobi said the planned six-lane road around the Second Niger Bridge corridor was part of broader efforts by the state government to address future population growth, transportation demands and development pressures.
He urged architects and other professionals involved in the built environment to place greater emphasis on planning and innovation, noting that Anambra’s increasing population would require deliberate measures to preserve land for infrastructure and other developments.
The commissioner also linked the government’s infrastructure planning to its decision to pursue additional airports in the state.
According to him, Anambra is currently working towards a second airport while also securing land for a third, with a long-term projection that the state could have three airports by 2070.
“It is planning that has made the second Anambra airport imperative. You plan for the future; you don’t micro-manage planning,” Ezeobi said.
“By 2070, Anambra shall have gotten three airports. We are building a second airport, and we are securing land for a third airport as a vision of where Anambra will be by 2070.”
He explained that the long-term approach was intended to prevent a situation where future governments would struggle to find sufficient land for major development projects.
“This is how we, as a state, are planning for the future, because if we didn’t plan for the future, we found out that a time would come in Anambra where there would be no space for development,” he said.
Ezeobi therefore urged members of the Nigerian Institute of Architects to take planning seriously and embrace innovative approaches capable of responding to population growth and increasing pressure on urban infrastructure.
He maintained that development planning must anticipate future needs rather than merely respond to problems after settlements and structures have already expanded into areas required for public infrastructure.
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