Mbah woos investors with economic opportunities

Governor of Enugu State, Dr Peter Mbah, has urged local and international investment community to explore investment opportunities in Enugu State. Mbah said this at Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) International Conference and Expo with theme :” Invest Nigeria” on Tuesday in Lagos. The governor assured investors of the state’s efforts in de-risking investment and making its ease of doing business more attractive. He said the state has abundant investment opportunities in agriculture and agro-industry, logistics and aviation, tourism, real estate, mineral resources, and information and communication technology (ICT), among others. Mbah said his administration was hinged on a paradigm shift from the traditional model of relaying on allocations from the Federation Account. This, he explained, was possible as the state leveraged its future and new growth plan on its extensive human and material resources. “Enugu is now open for business and we are markedly revisiting our ‘ease of doing business’ indicators to ensure the environment is conducive for business. “For example, our new land title processes will facilitate the issuance of Certificate of Occupancy in not more than 72 hours. “Processes for the procurement of building approvals will also be revisited and markedly reduced to achieve improved efficiency. “We are automating all our major government processes to ensure transparency in all aspects of engagement with government and facilitate self-service by the public with little or no need for physical engagement with public servants. “We are also willing to de-risk business investment in key sectors by providing access to land, providing support infrastructure, handling engagement with host communities, among others,” the governor said. Mbah added that his administration was building partnership with the private sector to unlock the capital market, attract investments, and retake its place in the local and global economy. In the area of agriculture and agro-industry, he said the state was currently positioning to take advantage of its proven strong factor productivity in the areas of some key segments of agriculture by opening up another 300,000 hectares of farmland. Mbah said focus crops and animal production opportunities include cassava, soyabean, oil palm production, cashew, which he said had a projected $7bn global market size by 2025. He added that the state’s Nsukka pepper had become “a veritable export commodity as well as an industrial raw material for various spice brand”. The governor noted that survey showed that about 40 per cent of the air cargo imported via Lagos was actually destined for the South East and South South, thus making investments in logistics and aviation quite lucrative. “In the area of logistics and aviation, we are investing extensively in our logistics and aviation sector to make transit through and to Enugu efficient and seamless. “To achieve this, we are prioritising development of a cargo terminal for the Enugu International Airport to facilitate the direct receipt of cargo in Enugu,” he said. He also revealed plans to develop the state’s light rail, invest in tourism, Information and Communication Technology (ICT). He added that plans were on to work with the Federal Government to attract investors for the production of natural gas and crude oil as well as abundant solid minerals such as ironstone, zinc, lead, limestone, kaolin. In his remarks, Dr Michael Olawale-Cole, President, LCCI, stressed that macroeconomic stability was crucial to increase investments and enhance the growth trajectory of the country.  Olawale-Cole said that the first requirement for boosting investment and promoting sustainable growth was a continuous political commitment to responsible fiscal policy and control of inflation. He, however, noted that the current administration had demonstrated its intention to support the growth and stability of the manufacturing sector, as well as the small businesses. “Another important element in investment decisions is the ease and cost of doing business. Over time, Nigeria’s rank in terms of the cost of starting a business, dealing with licenses, and enforcing contracts has substantially improved. “Improving regulatory standards and lowering barriers to entry into the market would encourage investment and spur growth,” he said. The LCCI President also emphasised ond the importance of a stable and predictable legal framework. He said Nigeria must also directly address issues of poverty and inequality, boost the middle class and consumer market, high rates of return on investment and the wealth associated with natural resources. (NAN)