Dr. Arthur Ifeanyi Okowa was born on the 8th of July, 1959 at Owa-Alero in the present Ika North-East Local Government Area of Delta State. He had his early education at the Iroro primary school, Owa-Alero and later attended the famous Edo College, Benin City, between 1970 and 1976. He graduated with the second best result in the Higher School Certificate Examination in the then Bendel State in 1976.
Thereafter, he proceeded to the University of Ibadan to study Medicine and Surgery, where he graduated in 1981 with MBBS, at the record age of 22. Upon completion of his stint with the National Youth Service Corps in 1982, Dr. Okowa worked briefly with the defunct Bendel State Hospitals Management Board as a Medical Officer before he went into private practice as Director, Victory Medical Centre, Igbanke, in 1986. He went on to open another branch at Boji-Boji, Owa.
Dr. Okowa’s humanitarian and philanthropic disposition over the years endeared him to his people as he often rendered free medical services to the poor in his community. He displays highly developed craftsmanship in his approach to work and challenges and this is evident in his constructive leadership and in his growing political profile.
In 1991, he served as Secretary to Ika Local Government Area before becoming the Chairman of Ika North-East Local Government Council in 1993. From 1999 to 2003, Ifeanyi Okowa served variously as Commissioner for Agriculture and Natural Resources; Water Resources Development and later, Health.
In 2007, he became the Secretary to Delta State Government from where he was elected as a Senator for Delta-South Senatorial district in 2011.
Since becoming the Governor of Delta State in May 2015, Dr. Okowa has rolled out specific programs to improve the welfare of the people. Here is a sample –
– Skills Training and Entrepreneurship Program (STEP)
– Youth Agricultural Entrepreneurs Program (YAGEP)
– Special Program for Persons with Disabilities (PwDs)
– Graduate Employment Enhancement Program (GEEP)
Independent observers say Dr. Okowa has been running people-oriented administration. They say his administration’s job creation programs are transforming the lives of previously unemployed youths. Across the state, there are testimonies of successful start-ups and viable small businesses by those who were trained and established under the programs. Some have grown to become employers of labour and are training other youths to become self-employed. Others have innovatively diversified into other businesses and trades to enhance their incomes and survival.
