By Abdul-kadir Abdullah
The Edo State Investment Promotion Office (ESIPO) has announced that over $2.5 billion has been attracted into the State as Domestic and Foreign Direct Investment since 2016.
The Managing Director, Mr Kelvin Uwaibi, made this announcement as he led a delegation on a media dialogue with journalists in the state under the umbrella of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), Edo State Council on Friday, August 25, 2023.
The parley held at the NUJ Press Center in Benin City, the state capital, with a focus on the media’s role in investment attraction and areas of collaboration to promote the state as the preferred Investment location for investors in Nigeria.
The ESIPO team was warmly received by the Chairman of the Council, Festus Alenkhe, and his executives who discussed milestones in Edo’s investment drive which has led to the inflow of over USD2.5 billion over seven years.
Analysing the portfolio, Mr Uwaibi pointed out to the journalists that the Ease of Doing Business Council which consists of more than 10 Ministries, Departments and Agencies, work in synergy to achieve every milestone. “It is not a one-man show” he said.
He broke down the figure into sectors showing that $550 million has been attracted into Agriculture, $200 million into Manufacturing, over $700 million in Energy, $800 million in Oil and Gas, $20 million in retail, $30 million in Technology, $40m in Real estate, and social investments in Education, healthcare, Entertainment, and MSMEs – raking in $200 million, adding that the figures are conservative.
He also explained the Edo State Government’s drive to improve the ease of doing business, and attracting diaspora investments especially towards Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), and thanked the NUJ for giving the Government the opportunity to collaborate with the media in promoting the Edo State as a preferred investment destination for investors.
He said: “As an Investment Promotion Agency (IPA), Media interaction is in our communication strategy to regularly provide updates to our people and our partners of what we are doing in the investment climate of the state. The media as the fourth estate of the realm, is critical to investment promotion and investment attraction. That is why we continuously seek for a continuous collaboration. Investment is everybody’s business”.
In his response, the NUJ Chairman noted the effect of rising inflation figures in Nigeria, and thanked the State Government for its efforts so far to cushion the effect.
Alenkhe welcomed the opportunity to partner with the government to promote made-in-Edo goods for export to the international market.
He lauded the focus of the government on empowering MSMEs identifying them as the cornerstone of economic growth in the state.
