By Amechi Ogbonna
Naasrawa State Governor, Abdullahi Sule, has assured the investing public of his administration’s commitment to enhancing the state’s business operating environment with improved set of incentives to support investors willing to explore its vast economic potential to help it achieve rapid industrial development.
The Governor who spoke virtually yesterday in Lagos at a media briefing to unveil plans for the hosting of the Nasarawa Investment Summit scheduled for May 11-12, 2022, said the state currently sits on huge deposit of zinc, lead, bitumen and other mineral resources waiting to be exploited by prospective investors.
According to him, Nasarawa State’s agricultural potential was huge enough to turn it into the bread basket of the nation, stressing that the state that shares borders with the Federal Capital Territory is now ready for business, having concluded an elaborate plan to incentivise investing in the state.
He said the summit which will be graced by a former Ghanaian President John Mahama would showcase Nasarawa economic potential and attract investment to different sectors including tourism, agriculture, mining and housing development.
“We have seen many investment summits in this country and decided to approach our own differently. “We started with an economic development study, which produced a document called Nasarawa Economic Development Strategy; a plan for the economic transformation of the state.
“It also provided the legal framework for doing business and to achieve ease of doing business in the state,” said Sule.
He said Nasarawa had a natural advantage to attract investors because it is contiguous to many parts of the Federal Capital Territory and as gateway to many neigbhouring states in the North and Southern Nigeria.
“We see Nasarawa as a “Diamond in the Rough” and we look forward to private investors coming to partner with us to further develop it,” Sule said.
On security, the Governor said that “Nasarawa has embarked on a holistic security architecture, which incorporates traditional rulers and other stakeholders to ensure that investors in the state operate in very secured environment devoid of security breaches, stressing that the approach makes it one of the safest states to do business in Nigeria.
He said, “The Nasarawa State Government recognises the need for a robust private sector for economic development and revitalisation, which is why we have built an effective Public-Private-Partnership framework that allows for long-term private sector participation. This has aided in the establishment of a favourable and enabling environment for increasing private sector investment, which has resulted in the creation of jobs, revenue, and overall economic development in the state”.
In an opening remark at the occasion, Chairman of Nasarawa Investment and Economic Advisory Council, Prof Koyinsola Ajayi, said the administration of Governor Sule has shown commitment to delivering the dividends of democracy and improving the lives of the people of Nasarawa.
“The administration believes greatly in the partnership between the private and public sectors as engine of growth and development.
“The investment summit is about building infrastructure. If you have good infrastructure, development follows. We see infrastructure as a stimulus for development. The state is ready to be the technology hub and tourist hub of the country.
Also speaking, Managing Director/CEO, Nasarawa Investment and Development Agency (NACIDDA) Mr Ibrahim Abdullahi, said the governor was leading the involvement of the private sector in changing the economic landscape of the state. “Nasarawa has a robust PPP, which has brought to life many developmental milestones.