Anambra’s wildlife park fits into Soludo’s tourism masterplan

With the completed perimeter fence and the clearing of the 20 hectares piece of land dedicated for the proposed Awka City Park, the Governor Chukwuma Soludo-led administration has reached an advanced stage in the construction of what could be regarded as the South East’s only functional conservation park in Nigeria in the next few months. The Awka City Park shall comprise of large artificial water bodies, massive green areas, buildings designed in the traditional Igbo architecture and a wildlife park.

The Awka City Park is located in Aguaba. The Aguaba district is part of the new Awka City- also known as Awka 2.0 – which is currently being developed by the Governor Soludo-led administration. Stakeholder engagements for the development of this park have since commenced and in the next rainy season the planting of vegetation for the Awka City Park will commence.

For tourists who wish to connect with nature, appreciate wildlife diversity, appreciate ecological interconnectedness of God’s creations, witness stunning landscapes and experience the beauty and diversity of nature, the Awka City Park is designed to be an ideal location for them. It will be an ideal location where tourists would feel a sense of peace and wellbeing. The goal is to increase the GDP of Awka through tourism.

The wildlife park in the Awka City Park shall be a major game changing facility. The Kruger National Park in South Africa gives a good example of what the contribution of a well-managed game reserve could be in an economy. The Kruger National Park had a direct contribution of 2.6 billion rands ($141 million) to South Africa’s GDP in the 2016/2017 season. While the park’s total contribution to GDP (including multipliers) was 6.6 billion rands ($360 million). The bulk of this revenue came from tourism. The park – which houses the big five animals: lion, leopard, elephant, rhino and buffalo – creates over 10,388 jobs. Another example of the economic contribution of game reserves is the London Zoo. In the 2022/2023 season, the London Zoo reported a net income of £3.8m and the total income for this period stood at £79.4m. The zoo employs 647 people in the UK alone and 105 overseas members of staff.

The South East used to have the Imo State Zoo and Wildlife Park in Owerri and the Enugu Zoo. While the zoo in Enugu has been converted to a posh estate, The Nation Newspaper in March 16, 2023 reported that the animals in the Zoological Garden and Wildlife Park in Owerri have been relocated to the Jos Wildlife Park. Though the Imo State government says that the move was to allow for the rehabilitation of the zoo, workers in the zoo accused the state government of plans to convert the zoo’s 10 hectares of land into a housing estate.

The management of zoos in Nigeria has not been very cheering. There are reports of many wild animals dying in some Nigerian zoos as a result of hunger. Many zoos in Nigeria have closed shop. But in Anambra, the framework to make the Awka City Park and its wildlife park sustainable is being fleshed out. Sources of revenues for the Awka City Park shall include: entrance fees, guided tour fees, advertisements and souvenir sales.

Interestingly, Anambra State has found the first animal for Awka’s game reserve. An old tortoise, which was found during the clearing of the 20-hectare land, has been kept in a secured location, where it is being taken care of.  The Anambra State government intends to procure other animals and endangered species for the game reserve.

The Awka City Park is estimated to create over 5,000 direct and indirect jobs. The direct professionals to be employed in the Awka Park range from veterinarians, horticulturists, caterers, animal caretakers to educators and administrative staff.

The Awka City Park will act as a catalyst for real estate development in the new Awka City – Awka 2.0. A booming zoological garden translates to a booming economy.

The Awka City Park fits into Governor Chukwuma Soludo’s tourism masterplan. In a few weeks, the Awka Fun Park will be commissioned. The Awka Fun Park (also known as the Solution Fun Park) comprises of outdoor and indoor amusement and water parks, as well as state-of-the-art indoor arcade games and bowling facilities. It has a 38m high Ferris wheel and probably the biggest roller coaster and drop tower in Nigeria. Of the seven swimming pools in the facility, three are Olympic-sized. The pirate ship in the facility mimics that in Disney Land in Paris.

These tourism investments will boost the GDP of Anambra. The plan is to have them well-managed by world class facility managers. These assets are intended to catalyze the development of other related tourism assets by the private sector. The vision is to make Anambra a preferred destination to live, invest, work, play, relax and enjoy in Nigeria.

The future of Anambra is bright under Governor Soludo’s watch.

Nwankwo is the special adviser to Soludo on special projects