Success of States in Attracting Investments Critical to Nigeria’s Economic Growth, Says FG

John Shiklam in Kaduna

The federal government yesterday said the success of states in attracting investments, creating jobs and increasing internally generated revenue is critical to the success of the entire country.

President Muhammadu Buhari said this on the third day of the ongoing Seventh Kaduna Economic and Investment Summit, tagged ‘KadInvest 7.0: Building a Resilient Economy.’

Buhari, who was represented by the Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, Maryam Yalwaji, said that the efforts had received wide recognition as manifested in the response of the business community through the quantum of investments into the state.
“The success of sub-nationals in attracting investments, creating jobs and increasing internally generated revenue, is critical to the success of the entire country,” he added.

 “Kaduna State has emerged as one of the leading destinations for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) for Nigeria in the last six years.
Buhari promised that the federal government would actively support the efforts of all states and the FCT to promote development across all sectors of the economy.

“I have closely followed the strides Kaduna has made since 2015; it is commendable also that investors are creating jobs in the agriculture sector taking advantage of the state’s prioritisation of agriculture.”

The president also acknowledged the successes recorded by the state in the areas of health, ICT, mining and renewable energy.
“I also note with delight, notable positive private partnership projects in the state, which aim at addressing food security and improving livelihood,” he added.
He said that the federal government would continue to support efforts to attract job-creating investments by the Kaduna state government.

“We believe that much can be done at the subnational level to drive human capital development and expand economic opportunities
“This massive investment in infrastructure upgrade that Kaduna is executing, is no doubt an enabler of economic dynamism, apart from the valuable significance of improving the well-being of citizens,” Buhari said.

According to him, the state is taking full advantage of the economic policies of the Federal Government and the heightened need to safeguard livelihoods.
In his presentation at the summit, which commenced on Thursday, Governor Nasir el-Rufai, said he has attracted a total investment portfolio of $4.48 billion comprising actualised and proposed investments in the last seven years.

The governor also said that the efforts had resulted in the creation of 75,750 direct and indirect jobs.
According to him, the flow of investments is a result of the state government’s continuous effort of providing a conducive environment for the private sector to drive the economy through numerous policy actions and reforms.

The governor also gave a recap of what his administration achieved since its inception and why investors should invest in the state.
According to him, the state has abundant natural resources, a productive workforce, and steady economic growth and serves as the gateway to the northern market.

“Kaduna State is also the most improved state in the 2018 Ease of Doing Business Subnational report by the World Bank and it has a very investor-friendly environment,” he added.