Background
Odion Ugbesia was born on 28 January 1949 in Ubiaja, Edo State.
politician Member of the Senate of Nigeria
Odion Ugbesia was born on 28 January 1949 in Ubiaja, Edo State.
University of Illinois system.
He gained a Bachelor in Political Science from the University of Illinois, and an Master of Arts in International Relations from Northeastern Illinois University, United States of America. From 1978 to 1989 he was a Lecturer in Political Science at the University of Benin. Odion Ugbesia was appointed Commissioner for Information in Edo state, then became special assistant to the Federal Minister of Housing. He was promoted to Minister of State at the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
In July 2003, President Olusegun Obasanjo appointed him Minister of Solid Minerals.
In a November 2003 interview, he stated that Nigeria had great mineral wealth, including gold, tantalite, barite, coal, and iron ore. These resources had not been sufficiently explored.
The government had a seven-year development plan, including revival of the Geological Survey Agency, conducting a full Airborne Geophysical Survey, and improving mining infrastructure and facilities. An important consideration was reducing environmental damage.
The government planned to formalize artesanal mining, training miners and monitoring their activity.
The Nigerian Coal Corporation was being privatized, and foreign investment was welcomed. As early as July 2004, Odion Ugbesia was being considered as a potential candidate for governor of Edo State in the 2007 elections. He was the favorite of Chief Anthony Anenih, one of the most powerful men in the state, having once been Anenih"s personal assistant.
Odion Ugbesia (Ighalo) was elected to the Senate for Edo Central in April 2007 for the People"s Democratic Party (PDP).
He was appointed to committees on Employment, Labour & Productivity, Air Force, Navy, National Planning and National Identity Card & Population. They included the Northern Ishan regional water project, work on the Ebu-Ahia-Asaba Road, a primary health centre with beds and medical equipment and borehole, contracts for control of erosion, farmland irrigation at Ilushi and rural porverty alleviation schemes.
Ugbesia ran successfully for reelection as Edo Central Senator on the PDP platform in the April 2011 elections.
He also served as Edo State Coordinator, and was a member of the Presidential Policy Advisory Committee on Niger Delta and other Oil Producing Areas.