The governor announced the appointment in a statement he issued himself.

Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu State has announced the appointment of Chidiebere Onyia as the new Secretary to the State Government (SSG).

Mr Mbah made the announcement in a statement he issued himself on Tuesday.

"I have just appointed Prof. Chidiebere Onyia (as the) new Secretary to the State Government (SSG)," he said in the statement, which was posted on his verified Twitter handle.

This is Mr Mbah's first appointment after being sworn in as the state's fourth governor on Monday.

Mr Onyia, until his appointment, was the managing director of the United Kingdom Nigeria Infrastructure Facility.

He was also the lead strategy advisor for the Federal Government of Nigeria and World Bank Group Power Sector Recovery Programme and had, over the years, rendered services to different international organisations and countries, among them the United Nations, Germany and Russia.

He is a visiting professor of education at Godfrey Okoye University, Enugu, and a former visiting professor at the University of Nigeria Nsukka. He serves on the governing council of two private Nigerian universities.

He holds a bachelor's degree in Biological Sciences, a master's degree in curriculum and instruction, MBA and a doctorate in educational leadership.

He also had a post-doctoral scholarship in education policy from the Ivy League Peabody College, Vanderbilt University.

The new SGG has over 25 years of experience in leadership, innovation, strategy, institutional reforms and research and has received numerous international and national awards and accolades for leadership excellence and outstanding contributions to the education sector.

He is well-published and a certified educational consultant, researcher, presenter and author of many books.

He was a member of the Transition Committee, which developed an actionable plan for Mr Mbah's administration based on his manifesto to the state's people.