By Inwalomhe Donald
Under the Alaghodaro economy, Asue Ighodaro, as Chief Economic Adviser to Governor Obaseki, attracted Edo State De United Food Limited (Dufil), Flour Mills Nigeria Plc, and eight other companies to boost oil palm development in the country with the establishment of farm estates across the state. Edo State’s investments in the state’s oil palm sector have risen to $660 million, with new projects proposed by Canada-based Sunora Foods worth over $100 million. The development was coming following the $560 million investment in the Edo State Oil Palm Programme by Fast Moving Consumer Goods companies and other private investors.
The Alaghodaro Summit Series (Edo State Investment Summit) is an initiative of His Excellency, Governor Godwin Obaseki-led administration, which opens up the government reform agenda that has created opportunities for prosperity, driven by Edo people and the state’s increasing investors, to public and private engagements with government, non-governmental, and non-state actors in ways that demonstrate the awareness of the Obaseki administration to the all-inclusive nature of governance in the twenty-first century.
Since the maiden edition of the Alaghodaro Summit Series in 2017, which marked the first year anniversary of the Godwin Obaseki-led government, it has become an annual event held to mark the anniversary, and it gives the opportunity to interrogate and challenge conventions that impede progress of the reforms with a view to correcting them.
In 2019, this initiative (Edo State Investment Summit) was incorporated with the Corporate Affairs Commission as “Alaghodaro Economic Summit LTD/GTE” in order for more private sector engagement and support while implementing the articulated recommendations from the summits in a sustainable manner.
The maiden edition (Alaghodaro 2017) themed “Envisioning the Future” brought together top Nigerian and international business leaders, investors, bankers, industry experts, policymakers, and academia to set the agenda for development in a bid to re-engineer the economy of Edo State towards a better future
The 2017 Summit also explored opportunities for local and foreign direct investments in Edo State by highlighting the state’s competitive advantage across various sectors for sustainable economic growth, as well as facilitating job-creating business investment into the state.
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In agriculture, with Asue Ighodaro as economic adviser, Edo was able to attract more than $600 million in investment into palm oil cultivation, having allocated the first phase of 60,000 hectares of land under the Edo State Oil Palm Production Programme (ESOPP). As part of the Edo State Government’s expansion of the oil palm revolution, Fayus Nigeria Limited has commenced the development of a 3,000-hectare plantation in Ugbeturu Community, Owan West Local Council, with a target of creating 5,000 jobs in the community at full capacity.
Under Alaghodaro Economy, Edo has big-time investors, and land has so far been allocated to them through the ESOPP. The Governor of Edo State, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, has allocated lands for large-scale commercial farming in multiples of 5,000 and 10,000 hectares (ha) to both indigenous and foreign agro-investors like Agro-allied Resources and Processing Nigeria Limited (operated by Dufil); AgriPalm Ltd, a subsidiary of Flour Mills Nigeria Plc; Saro Oil Palm; Bragav Nigeria Limited; and Saturn Farms, among others. These investors are currently at different stages of development at their respective lands.”
The project is captured under the Edo State Oil Palm Programme (ESOPP), rated as the largest oil palm development project in Africa. The ESOPP program, backed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), is spearheading the development of over 100,000 hectares of land across the state.
Governor Obaseki is set to return Nigeria to the world’s leading producer of palm oil. The Edo palm oil program, which engages more than 8 palm oil companies, has invested in palm oil production in Edo. Governor Obaseki has started the project of expanding Edo State palm oil development to boost Nigeria’s palm oil production in the global 73.23 million metric tonnes.
He is supporting major palm tree plantation owners in Edo State, which have large industrial estates to expand Nigeria’s palm oil production. Okomu Oil Palm Plc, Precso, Agri-Palm (FMN), and others are expanding. Major Oil Palm Holdings in Edo are Okomu Oil Palm Plc, publicly quoted; Presco, publicly quoted; SIAT Edo Agri-Palm (FMN); Flour Mills Nigeria; A&Hatman, private; Aden River, private; Fayus Oil Palm Plantation; and Saturn, private. Ovia North East provided 25,329 hectares; Ovia South West had 36,759 hectares; while Orhionmwon and Uhunmwode provided 51,000 and 23,000 hectares of land, respectively, for the expansion of palm oil production in Edo State. Okomu Oil and Presco are expanding their plantations in Edo State.
Asue Ighodaro, as economic adviser to Governor Obasaki, has attracted over six hundred million dollars into the Edo palm oil program, which is a product of the Alaghodaro economy. I want to advise those who are asking questions about what Asue Ighodaro has done for the people of Edo State to come so that I can take them to the various palm oil plantations that companies have established when Asue Ighodaro was the economic adviser.
Edo State under Alaghodaro Economy is expanding palm oil plantations in Ovia North East local government, which provided 25,329 hectares; Ovia South West local government provided 36,759 hectares; while Orhionmwon local government and Uhunmwode local government provided 51,000 and 23, 000 hectares of land, respectively, for the expansion of palm oil production in Edo State. This is the Alaghodaro economy with Asue Ighodaro as economic adviser.
Inwalomhe Donald writes via inwalomhe.donald@yahoo.com
