Appraising Gov Abiodun’s Tour of Egypt, Ethiopia

Nigeria has had a difficult time in the last two and a half years. The reasons for the difficulties are well known. The global system was almost caught off guard by the COVID-19 pandemic’s seismic economic ups and downs.

The current administration of Governor Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State had only recently settled into office when the dreaded disease struck, casting a tragic pall over the country. And now that the usual stock-taking session has begun in preparation for the next general elections, the only objective assessment of the administration’s performance in light of Abiodun’s stated commitment to maintaining the state’s reputation as an investment destination of choice can be made.

Despite the pandemic’s disruptive effects, Governor Abiodun has risen to the challenge of governance in a dwindling economy, remaining focused on his mission to take the state to the next level in its drive to become an industrial hub, not only in Nigeria, but also in the West African sub-region.

Ogun State is home to some of the largest manufacturing companies in the sub-region, owing to its proximity to Lagos and the availability of readymade markets. According to the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission’s (NIPC) second-quarter report for 2021, investment in Ogun stands at $500 million, accounting for 30% of total investment in the country, while Lagos State accounts for 26% of total investment with $441.3 million.

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In addition, the World Bank’s latest report ranked Ogun State third out of 37 states in terms of ease of doing business. In a similar report on capital importation into Nigeria compiled by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in 2021, Ogun State was ranked as the fifth most popular destination for capital investment in Nigeria, trailing Lagos, Abuja, Abia, and Niger states.

As a result, it goes without saying that there are still enormous development potentials to be realized. And, of course, the governor, as a proactive person with a background in the private sector, hasn’t been sitting on his hands. Apart from his steadfast efforts to maintain the pace, he has also made a concerted effort to break new ground by forming private-public partnerships for infrastructural development, which is essential for long-term industrial growth. And he’s doing it with zeal and enthusiasm.

“Our state remains the best place for investors to open business,” Governor Abiodun said in his inaugural address, referring to his commitment to creating a long-term investment environment in the state. We share borders with four other states and international borders with the Benin Republic, which is a window to the West African sub-region, in addition to our natural geographical location as a Gateway State to Nigeria. My administration is focused on providing quality governance and creating an enabling environment for a public-private sector partnership, which we believe is critical to the people of Ogun achieving long-term economic development and individual prosperity. We are a very investor-friendly organization. We’re putting in place reforms to make us even more investor-friendly. We’re working hard to make sure we’re number one in the country for ease of doing business, and it’s undeniable that we have the country’s largest number of industries.”

He is already practicing what he preaches. His recent business tour of Egypt and Ethiopia, which aimed to attract pan-African investors and partners to boost the state’s revenue profile, is proof of that. The governor met with the Chief Business Development Officer of frkà for Wadi Degla Holding, a Cairo-based multi-business conglomerate with interests in real estate, telecoms, and sports services, while in Egypt. Wadi Degla Holding is exploring the African market and wants to invest in Nigeria in particular, with a special interest in creative arts, entertainment, and sports development. Because of the existing ease of doing business and other socio-economic transformations in the state, Abiodun believes that Ogun, as the Gateway State, should be given top priority.

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Governor Abiodun met with Mr Gagan Gupta, a renowned entrepreneur and co-founder of ARISE IIP, ARISE IS, and ARISE P&L, as part of his effort to develop sustainable industrial, infrastructure, and logistics solutions, as part of his insatiable search for investment opportunities. His motivation stems from the fact that the tripartite pan-African company has a track record in Gabon, Togo, and the Benin Republic of developing sustainable industrial ecosystems supported by infrastructure and logistics solutions.

To that end, the Benin Republic’s Senior Minister of Economy and Finance, Romauld Wadagni, was present to share his experience with the Republic’s Governor, resulting in a successful implementation. The focus of the meeting was on forming a partnership in the Agro-Processing and Industrial Zone, as well as the development of the Olokonla Port, which is an important part of the administration’s integrated multimodal transportation master plan.

Abiodun also met with the management of Elsewedy Group, one of Egypt’s largest conglomerates with significant investment opportunities across Africa and Europe, as part of his search for long-term investment. The governor sought collaboration with the group in the areas of healthcare, industrial park development, real estate, intelligent transportation systems network and management, tolling systems, and the power sector in this context.

The CEO of the company is expected to be in Ogun State to sign the necessary documents to complete the deal, according to the Governor, who spoke at the end of the meeting: “The company is the world’s largest producer of prepaid meters. Following this meeting, the investment team will be hosted in Ogun State to further evaluate and structure these investment opportunities, after which the President & CEO of the Elsewedy Group, Ahmed El Sewedy, who was on the ground to greet us, will travel to Ogun State to sign a document in these areas and execute relevant definitive transaction agreements on these investments.”

On the same trip, he met with Orascom Construction Plc, a leading global engineering and construction company, to discuss how public-private partnerships can help bring about investments in infrastructure, commerce, and industry. When the agreement is fully implemented, it will improve the business environment in Ogun State. Emad A. Boulos, Ahmed Elzoghby, and Ayman El Zoghby, among others, were in attendance at the meeting.

Abiodun went on to organize another meeting with Orascom Construction Plc in Egypt, as part of his determined effort to achieve meaningful collaboration with private sector players for infrastructure development. Orascom is a leading international engineering and construction company with operations in the Middle East, Africa, and the United States. The Orascom team sees Ogun State as a valuable partner and has pledged to expand its tentacles throughout Nigeria via the Gateway State.

Orascom’s operations include infrastructure engineering, as well as the industrial and commercial sectors.

To summarize, Ogun State is well positioned to reap the full benefits of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) in order to expand its trade and investment within the West African sub-region. The establishment of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) was primarily motivated by this concern, with the goal of accelerating intra-African trade relations and bolstering Africa’s trading position in the global market by strengthening Africa’s common voice and policy space in global trade negotiations. Prince Abiodun is already on the lookout for Ogun’s share of the AfCFTA market. This was evident in his meeting with the management of Wadi Degla Holding, based in Cairo, which is planning an expansion into African markets.

During his investment tour of Ethiopia, the governor met with Ethiopian Minister of Industry, Ato Melaku Alebal, in Addis Ababa, in the company of Nigeria’s Minister of Agriculture, Dr Mohammed Abubakar, to explore areas of mutual benefit in the areas of trade, investment, and collaboration between Ethiopia and Ogun (and by extension Nigeria).

The Special Agro-Processing Zones (SAPZs), which are being implemented by the African Development Bank, are of particular interest (AfDB).

Prior to this, the Ogun State government met with the African Development Bank (AfDB) in Abidjan, Cote D’Ivoire, to discuss the establishment of the SAPZs program and sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the bank. SAPZ will be located in the state’s Ikenne Local Government Area, at the Gateway Agro-Cargo Airport, Ilishan-Remo. The SAPZ project has already been launched in Ethiopia. As a result, the trip provided an opportunity to compare notes and observe the operation firsthand.

All of this is done without losing sight of the administration’s commitment to agriculture as one of the state’s economic pillars. On that note, Abiodun has taken advantage of the current opportunity to visit Alvan Blanch’s UK manufacturing and agro-processing headquarters, a company that specializes in the design and manufacture of machines for the processing of agricultural produce and waste. When the initiative is completed, it will alter the narrative surrounding the state’s and nation’s agricultural sector’s declining fortunes.

In addition to all of this, the governor has gone above and beyond to entice OCP Africa to invest in the state. OCP Africa is a Moroccan multinational that is investing N9 billion in fertilizer blending plants with a capacity of over 600,000 metric tons.

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In a similar vein, the Abiodun administration has signed another investment agreement with Terratiga Limited, a Dutch animal feeds investor with a production capacity of 100 tons per day and 1.2 million tons per year.

Governor Abioudun has put in place a number of policy measures to attract business investors, knowing that his aggressive drive for investment in the state would be a pipe dream without the necessary enabling environment. The Business Environment Council was established, the land acquisition process was restructured to remove all bottlenecks, the Geographic Information System (GIS) was upgraded, and the Ogun State Land Administration and Revenue Management Systems (OLARMS) was created to digitalize land acquisition for ease and efficiency. The Business Environment Council has been busy coordinating the implementation of all of these reforms in order to achieve rapid industrial growth in the state, as per its mandate.

To complement the state’s transformation into an industrial hub, the administration is working around the clock to create the necessary enabling environment through aggressive road network infrastructure development. To this end, a concerted effort has been made to improve road infrastructure across the state in order to facilitate the movement of industrial and agro-allied goods to their final markets.

Those with critical minds have applauded the governor’s efforts, while cynics who have been engaged in beer parlour punditry may not see anything good in this endeavor. On closer examination, the importance of the Governor’s initiative in reversing the state’s economic fortunes cannot be overstated. Apart from the potential benefits of reintegrating the state’s teeming unemployed youths into productive ventures, it will also improve the state’s ability to generate internal revenue (IGR). Furthermore, by transforming the state into an industrial hub, the state’s proximity to Lagos will be fully realized through a readymade market for goods and services. Above all, it will facilitate the Federal Government’s diversification policy, allowing the state to become less reliant on oil revenue and financially self-sufficient.

The goal is to turn the state’s distinct advantages—a peaceful and secure environment, an enabling business environment, infrastructural transformation, highly skilled human resources, natural endowment, and an efficient regulatory framework—into tangible gains in key economic sectors.

From Abeokuta, Ogun State, Ogbonnikan wrote.