By Godwin Offor
Governor Chukwuma Soludo has consistently presented education, human capital development and a technologically driven Anambra as important pillars of his administration. That is why the condition and future of Anambra State Polytechnic, Mgbakwu, in Awka North Local Government Area, deserves urgent attention.
This is not simply a call for another government project. It is a call to protect an investment that already exists.
Anambra State Polytechnic did not start from nowhere. The institution evolved from the former Anambra State College of Agriculture, which was established in 2007 and upgraded to polytechnic status in 2017 under the administration of former Governor Willie Obiano. The stated objective was to expand manpower development and provide technological and entrepreneurial skills for young people.
The question today is simple: What should happen to all the public resources already committed to that vision?
Should the state allow the institution to deteriorate until previous investments become worthless, or should it make the strategic intervention required to turn the Polytechnic into a functional centre of technical education?
For a governor who is a professor and an economist, the answer should logically begin with investment in human capital.
A Polytechnic is more than buildings
The debate about Anambra Polytechnic should not be reduced to classrooms, hostels or administrative blocks.
A properly functioning polytechnic can train technicians, engineers, entrepreneurs, agricultural technologists, ICT professionals and other skilled workers needed by a modern economy.
Anambra is widely known for its commercial and industrial activity. The state has major commercial centres in Onitsha and industrial clusters around Nnewi and other communities. These businesses require skilled manpower.
A state-owned polytechnic in Mgbakwu should therefore be viewed as part of the state’s economic infrastructure.
If properly equipped, ANSPOLY could become a pipeline for the skilled workers needed by Anambra’s manufacturing, agricultural, construction, technology and small-business sectors.
Government investment should not be allowed to become waste
One of the strongest arguments for reviving the institution is the principle of continuity in governance.
Every administration inherits projects, institutions and public assets from its predecessors. A new governor does not necessarily have to agree with every decision made by a previous administration. But where a public investment has potential value, the responsible approach is to assess it, improve it where necessary and make it productive.
Anambra’s own budget documents show that the state has continued to make provisions for projects at ANSPOLY, including workshop classrooms, an engineering complex, entrepreneurship facilities, accreditation, hostels and other infrastructure.
That makes the argument for a comprehensive intervention even stronger: the institution should not merely receive scattered budgetary provisions; it needs a coherent revival plan with measurable outcomes.
Soludo has already seen the problem
This is particularly important because Governor Soludo has personally visited the institution.
During an assessment visit, the governor acknowledged the institution’s untapped potential and said evaluative mechanisms had been established to identify its needs and facilitate progress.
The governor has also argued that the responsibility for transforming the Polytechnic should involve government, educational stakeholders, the Mgbakwu community and other partners.
That approach is reasonable. Government does not have to carry every responsibility alone.
But partnership cannot become an excuse for government inaction.
The state owns the institution. Government has the authority to provide the strategic direction, funding framework, staffing support and infrastructure required to make private and community participation meaningful.
What should Soludo do?
The solution does not necessarily require throwing money at the Polytechnic without accountability.
The first step should be a transparent technical and financial audit of ANSPOLY.
The government should establish:
- What infrastructure already exists?
- What infrastructure is incomplete?
- What programmes require accreditation?
- What equipment is available and what is missing?
- How many qualified academic staff are required?
- What is the institution’s current student capacity?
- What has been spent on the Polytechnic in previous years?
- What additional investment is required to make it fully functional?
- What internally generated revenue can realistically be developed?
- What industries and private-sector organisations can partner with the institution?
After that assessment, the government should publish a three-to-five-year ANSPOLY revitalisation plan with clear targets.
The plan should prioritise laboratories, workshops, engineering facilities, ICT infrastructure, accreditation, qualified lecturers, student accommodation, electricity, water, security and a modern learning environment.
Accreditation should be treated as an urgent priority
A polytechnic cannot fulfil its purpose if students cannot access properly accredited programmes.
Previous reports have highlighted accreditation and the institution’s ability to produce graduates with the necessary recognition as major concerns.
Therefore, the administration should work with the National Board for Technical Education and other relevant authorities to establish exactly what is required for each programme and then fund those requirements systematically.
The objective should not simply be to announce accreditation.
The objective should be to create programmes that are credible, employable and connected to Anambra’s economy.
Mgbakwu should become a skills hub
There is an even bigger opportunity here.
Rather than treating ANSPOLY as just another government tertiary institution competing for annual subvention, Soludo’s administration could reposition it as an industrial and technical skills hub for Anambra.
Imagine a Polytechnic where students learn engineering while interacting with manufacturers from Nnewi.
Imagine agricultural students working with farmers and agro-processors.
Imagine ICT students developing solutions for local businesses.
Imagine entrepreneurship students receiving practical training and access to startup support.
Imagine technical workshops where young people acquire skills that can immediately translate into employment or enterprise.
That is the kind of institution that can justify public investment.
The governor’s academic background raises expectations
Governor Soludo’s academic background makes this conversation even more significant.
A professor should understand that education is not merely an expenditure line in a budget. It is an investment in the productive capacity of society.
Roads connect places. Infrastructure supports businesses. But education and technical training produce the people who design, build, operate and maintain those systems.
If Anambra wants to become a competitive, technology-driven economy, it cannot afford to allow a state-owned institution dedicated to technical education to remain underdeveloped.
This is not about Willie Obiano or Soludo
The debate should also move beyond partisan politics.
If a previous administration invested in ANSPOLY, the appropriate question is not who should receive political credit.
The question is: How can Anambra get value from the investment?
If Willie Obiano started the journey, Soludo can finish it.
If some previous investments were poorly planned, the present administration can correct them.
If additional funding is required, the government can provide it subject to accountability.
If public-private partnership is necessary, the government can build it.
What matters is the institution’s future.
Soludo should act first
There is a strong case for the governor to make ANSPOLY one of the institutions where his administration demonstrates that continuity and accountability can work together.
The state should not wait until buildings deteriorate further, equipment becomes obsolete or students lose confidence in the institution.
The governor has already visited the Polytechnic. His administration has already acknowledged its potential. Budget documents have also continued to contain provisions for projects there.
What is needed now is execution, coordination and measurable results.
Governor Soludo has an opportunity to transform ANSPOLY from an institution people debate into an institution people point to as evidence of what purposeful investment in education can achieve.
The people of Awka North should not have to watch a public institution deteriorate while government debates its viability.
Assess it. Fund it. Equip it. Accredit it. Staff it. Partner with industry. Demand accountability. Then let the Polytechnic produce the skilled young people Anambra’s economy needs.
If government investment has already gone into building the foundation, the next responsible step is not abandonment.
It is completion.
And on ANSPOLY, Governor Soludo should act first.
