The Anambra State Government has issued demolition notices to more than 500 owners and occupiers of illegal and unsafe buildings across Nnewi as part of Governor Chukwuma Soludo's urban renewal drive.
Soludo visited Nnewi recently and announced plans to rebuild the commercial city to match its status as an industrial hub. The Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development has now begun enforcing that promise by targeting dilapidated and dangerous structures across the city.
Commissioner Chijioke Oseloka Ojukwu said the affected buildings include shanties built under high-tension power lines, structures without approved setbacks, unauthorised developments, filling stations, hotels, and other decrepit buildings that pose hazards to public safety. The targeted areas span the Nnewi Triangle, Hundred Foot Road, Post Office area, Anaedo Road, Igwe Orizu Road, Ezemewi Road, Nkwo axis, and sections of the Nnewi-Owerri Road right-of-way, as well as major corridors in Otolo, Umudim, and Uruagu.
Ojukwu said the action aligns with Soludo's vision of building a cleaner, safer, and more orderly urban environment. He described the regeneration initiative as comprehensive, designed to restore order, improve infrastructure, and reposition Nnewi as a modern industrial and commercial centre. The notices serve as formal warnings to owners of structures obstructing the right-of-way of the newly dualized Nnewi-Owerri Road and other areas earmarked for redevelopment under the state's urban transformation agenda.
The state government is expected to begin actual demolition after the notice period expires, with enforcement teams moving across the identified corridors to clear obstructing structures.
