The Ebonyi State Government has taken steps to reform the housing and commercial sectors, with the State Executive Council (EXCO) approving the transmission of bills to the State House of Assembly aimed at regulating house rents, estate agents’ charges and scrap metal trading across the state.
Key Highlights
Ebonyi Government to Regulate House Rents through a new landlord-tenant bill.
Estate agents’ commission to be capped at 2% of total rent.
Only licensed and registered estate agents will be permitted to operate.
New legislation targets scrap metal trade to curb vandalism and improve public safety.
EXCO approves plans for a 6,000-tonnes-per-day cement plant at Nkalagu.
Government orders termination of abandoned road contracts and accelerates project completion.
Herbal Heritage Gardens to be established across Ebonyi’s three senatorial districts.
Briefing journalists after Tuesday’s EXCO meeting at the Government House, Centenary City, Abakaliki, the Commissioner for Information and State Orientation, Chief Ikeuwah Omebeh, said the proposed landlord-tenant legislation is designed to protect residents from exploitative housing practices.
According to him, the bill will prohibit estate agents from charging more than two per cent of the total rent paid by tenants, while restricting practice to only qualified and duly registered professionals.
He explained that the proposed law is intended to eliminate arbitrary charges and sanitise the state’s real estate sector.
“EXCO approved the transmission of the bill to the Ebonyi State House of Assembly for proper legislation,” Omebeh said.
The commissioner also disclosed that the Council approved another bill to regulate the purchase, sale, transportation, possession and disposal of metal and electrical scraps.
He said the legislation seeks to combat vandalism of public infrastructure, strengthen public safety and improve environmental protection through stricter oversight of scrap metal activities.
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Beyond the proposed reforms, EXCO approved the establishment of Herbal Heritage Gardens in the three senatorial districts of Ebonyi State.
According to Omebeh, the initiative will be implemented by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism in collaboration with the Ministries of Health and Agriculture and Natural Resources to promote research, preservation and standardisation of indigenous herbal medicine.
He added that stakeholder consultations, site selection and the development of a regulatory framework would commence immediately in partnership with the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and relevant research institutions.
Within the next 90 days, he said, government will submit a supplementary memorandum to provide legal backing for the standardisation of herbal medicine, protection of intellectual property rights and its integration into primary healthcare services.
On infrastructure, Omebeh announced that EXCO had directed the Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice to begin legal proceedings to terminate all abandoned two-kilometre road contracts across the state.
He said the decision followed a comprehensive review of the projects, while dedicated EXCO committees have been constituted in all local government areas to ensure the roads are completed before September 2026.
The commissioner further revealed that the Commissioner for Special Projects, Dr. Ngozi Obichukwu, has been mandated to compile a comprehensive inventory of all abandoned road projects for immediate intervention.
In a major industrial development, EXCO also approved the proposed design, construction and operation of a 6,000-tonnes-per-day cement plant at the Nkalagu Cement Industry in partnership with Jiangsu Pengfei Group Ltd.
Omebeh said the project forms part of the Ebonyi State Government’s strategy to revive industrial production, attract investment, create jobs and stimulate sustainable economic growth.
