In Third Anniversary Celebration, Makinde Shares Scorecard, Says Govt Policies Yielding Desired Results

•Says state has attracted over N23bn in agribusiness investments

Governor of Oyo State, ‘Seyi Makinde yesterday shared a scorecard of his administration in the last three years, declaring that the economic policies of the government have been yielding positive results.

He appreciated residents of the state for their support, patience and understanding and for trusting his government to deliver on its promises.

In a statement yesterday, the governor maintained that his government would continue to consolidate on the gains already recorded in the education sector, road infrastructure and agribusiness, among others.

The statement signed by the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Mr. Taiwo Adisa, indicated that the governor stated these in a state broadcast in commemoration of the administration’s third year in office.

Makinde maintained that the gains already recorded by the administration in the last three years included the construction of several roads that have impacted positively on the economy of the state through the creation of a thriving environment for private sector players in the state’s agribusiness sector.

He noted that the increased private sector participation in the agribusiness sector had enabled the state to attract N23 billion in agribusiness investments, as well as securing another $125 million in development partners-blended finance for rural roads, agro logistics, market and industrial hubs.

All these, the governor said, contributed to providing direct and indirect jobs to residents of the state, adding that the state had also trained close to 4,050 youths in agribusiness, 98 of whom have started their businesses, while the state is set to support the others in diverse agribusiness enterprises.

According to the governor, the government would now move on to fix inner and feeder roads so that inner-city travels could become stress-free for residents, having been executing road projects that improved access and connectivity between the zones in the state.

Some of these projects, he noted, included the 65km Moniya-Ijaiye-Iseyin Road, the 76.7km Ogbomoso-Fapote-Iseyin Road, the 34.85km Oyo-Iseyin Road and the proposed reconstruction of the 48 km Ido-Eruwa Road.

The governor equally said the administration has constructed 56 Model Schools in three years, while it has also completed the renovation of 200 Primary Health Care Centres in its drive to ensure the existence of at least one functional PHC in each of the 351 Electoral Wards of the state.

He said: “When you gave us the mandate to serve, we made a promise to you that we would engineer a modern Oyo State by building on four pillars: Education, Economy, Health and Security.

“As we mark our third year in office, we have another opportunity to share our scorecard with you so that you can judge how well we have kept that promise.

“As we review the past year, we are thankful that our administration’s economic policies in the past three years are yielding the desired results. We have always said we believe in data, science and logic.

“The data we had showed that our resources as a nation were dwindling. Oil prices had dropped and there was a need to focus on raising our Internally Generated Revenue (IGR).”

The statement added: “We continued with our free health mission to the indigent and underserved. In the past year, we reached over half a million residents with medical and surgical interventions.

“In total, over one million, two hundred thousand residents of Oyo State have benefitted from the free health missions since it commenced in 2020.

“We have provided over 280 kilometres of public lighting through the ‘Light up Oyo’ project.

“This has not only enhanced economic activities as markets remain open for longer, but it has also improved the security in the state.

“Not only that, we have provided lighting in off-grid areas. Communities such as Otefon in Atiba Local Government Area had electricity supply for the first time since their existence over 100 years ago. While work is ongoing to provide off grid electricity at Agbararu Community in Iwajowa Local Government Area, Ajia Community in Ona Ara Local Government Area and Arowomole Community in Ogbomoso South Local Government Area,” the governor added.

In the security sector, Governor Makinde noted that his government has been able to bring crime rates down by equipping security agencies, pointing out how it handed over 100 operational vehicles to Oyo Amotekun recently.