The Greater Aba Development Authority (GADA) has completed the restoration of the ancestral communities of Akoli Aba and Umuosi, bringing an end to years of environmental neglect and decay.
For more than 30 years, the communities located in the heart of Aba Ohazu suffered serious environmental damage. Many houses were flooded and abandoned, while parts of the area were turned into dumping sites, forcing residents to leave.
The project carried out by the Greater Aba Development Authority led to the area’s recovery. Thousands of tons of waste were cleared, and the land was leveled to make it usable again.
GADA also constructed three new roads in the area, namely Umuosi, Ihuoma, and Ukaumunna. These roads now connect Ibadan Street to Ohanku Road, improving movement and making access easier for residents and visitors.
The development has improved road links and brought new life back to the affected communities.
The GADA Project in View
The Greater Aba Development Authority (GADA) is a specialized government agency established by Governor Alex Otti to spearhead the holistic rejuvenation of Aba, the commercial and industrial nerve center of Abia State.
The government body is backed by Abia’s constitution, which was assented to on December 11, 2023. The GADA Bill was the very first executive bill passed into law under Governor Otti’s administration, providing a strong legal foundation for the city’s urban renewal.
GADA is led by the pioneering Director-General, Architect Uche Ukeje, and serves as a centralized master vehicle. It coordinates and integrates overlapping infrastructural, layout, and developmental efforts across various state Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs).
One of GADA’s biggest initiatives is the Aba Master Plan, which drives the comprehensive reengineering of the commercial city of Aba. This includes structured urban planning initiatives such as formalized house numbering, strict drainage-opening policies to curb seasonal flooding, and standardized street naming.
Aside from physical infrastructure, GADA is also people-centered, spearheading socioeconomic programs like the “SME Clinic ” in partnership with commercial banks.
This initiative trains, retrains, and scales up the capacity of local artisans and manufacturing businesses to improve Aba’s overall ease of doing business.
