Bamigbola Gbolagunte, Akure

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Wednesday said that Ondo State has a critical role to play in the economic development of the country with the huge mineral resources embedded in the state.

The Vice President noted that there resources across the state capable of transforming the country to investors’ delight.

Osinbajo who spoke in Akure, the Ondo State capital at the opening of a two-day State Development Partners Summit and re-launch of the State Education Endowment Fund (OSEEF) said Ondo State is blessed with resources, which if well developed could transform the nation’s economy.

Represented by Dr. Isa Aliyu Ibrahim, the Director General of National Information Technology Agency (NITDA), Osinbajo  disclosed that the Federal Government was ready to patner with the state for all the resources to be harnessed.

His words: “No doubt, Ondo State has a lot of potential that can bring all round development to this country. And this type of summit is an indication that the state is preparing for development. I want to commend the state government for this great initiative where investors would come together to brainstorm.

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“I must say that development has suffered in two ways; over exposure of words and under implementation of polices. We talk too much and pay less attention to implementation of our policies.

“Human capital development is key and I am happy the state is doing something on this because people must be involved in the process of development.”

Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu,in his address, stressed that the summit was designed to create a platform for partnership with stakeholders in the private and public sector for economic growth and development.

The governor said the collaboration would be in the area of agricultural development, infrastructural development and human development to create a resilient and growing economy in the state.

He stated: “In the same vein, the rebirth of Ondo State Education Endowment Fund (OSEEF) today is targeted at bridging the funding gap in the education sector. It is also aimed at creating an effective avenue for sustainable growth and development of education in the State.

“Ondo State has the potential to become a key player in the economy of the South West region by virtue of its human and natural endowments. It is imperative that we re-engineer the economy and place it on a trajectory of sustained growth. To achieve this, our Administration understands the fact that sustainable development can be accomplished through robust partnership. Therefore, our focus is to ensure rapid growth, development and sustainability of the economy.

“We need your collaboration and cooperation in the areas of infrastructural development, agricultural development and capacity building to create a growing and resilient economy for our state.
On our part, we will continue to put in place investor-friendly regulatory environment that will allow the private sector to thrive,” he added.