Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, has revealed that the state’s ongoing recruitment of medical personnel has attracted applications from beyond Nigeria’s borders.

Speaking during his monthly media chat at Government House, Umuahia, on Thursday evening, Otti disclosed that doctors, nurses, and other medical professionals from Zambia, South Africa, and other Nigerian states have already applied for the 771 available positions.

He said the interest from outside the state and country was a strong signal of the confidence people place in his administration’s healthcare reforms.

Otti stressed that the recruitment process would be strictly merit-based, with applicants undergoing tests to ensure that only the most qualified candidates are employed.

The governor further noted that more Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs) had recently been made functional across Abia. He assured that medical staff would be provided with accommodations at the PHCs to guarantee round-the-clock services.

Beyond healthcare, Otti also highlighted his administration’s agricultural initiatives, saying Abia farmers were being supported to shift from subsistence to commercial farming. According to him, a new technology-driven system has been introduced to register and monitor genuine farmers, with 45,000 already enumerated.

In the education sector, the governor announced that all 33 courses at the Oggbonnaya Onu Polytechnic—which had previously lost accreditation—have now been fully re-accredited by the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE).

Otti reiterated that his government remains focused on reforms across key sectors, designed to strengthen service delivery, curb rural-urban migration, and restore confidence in Abia’s public institutions.