NIPC, ODU’A, DAWN Commission to open new investment promotion frontiers

The Nigeria Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC) has set in motion a synergy with Odu’a Investment Company Limited and Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (DAWN) Commission to open new investment promotion frontiers to attract global investors.
Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission, Yewande Sadiku, who led a delegation on a courtesy visit to Odu’a Headquarters, Cocoa House, Ibadan, promised to workout modalities to make the synergy a success.
According to her, NIPC’s mandate in the context of Nigeria is very important, especially at time like this, going by the challenges being faced as a nation and the best way to get out of recession, she said was to invest “our way out of it by making our industries/firms attractive to attract domestic and international investors.”
According to her, “NIPC is a federal investment promotion agency, even though we have the might of the centre, our objectives is to promote investment effectively. Engagement with states is very important to us and I found this platform of ODU’A and DAWN as very convenient and compelling because it gives us a one stop centre to engage all the six states in the zone at a go.
“We have a one-stop centre that houses 27 agencies where investors can get information about investment they want to invest in. Odu’a Investment is one of the 27 agencies we have and I see DAWN as the equivalent of our one-stop shop, which is where you can engage and speak with the six states in the South West region.
“We want to work with Odu’a Investment in area of promoting domestic direct investment that will impact on the people because there are many wealthy Nigerians abroad that should key into these programme.”
Sadiku further said: “We are planning a direct investment summit where we will invite a handful of global investors together in Nigeria to see different projects in one summit. We are pulling together investment project that we can showcase to the world at the summit.”
Earlier in his remarks, the Group Managing Director of Odu’a Investment Company Limited, Adewale Raji, said the collaboration between the NIPC, ODU’A and DAWN is to boost investments in Southwest Nigeria, a region replete with countless investment opportunities.
“When you talk of investing in Nigeria, the South-West zone has a credible investment history and competence with good examples to show. We have significant history with few challenges which we are taking care of to move on with business,” Raji said.
In a short presentation, Raji disclosed that Odu’a has rolled out an ambitious plan to invest massively in agriculture and agro-allied industry. He said the plan, christened Integrated Agric Project, is to see the setting up of large farms and processing factories in the host communities.
According to him, the plan will create huge employment opportunities, transform host communities economically, increase farmers’ profitability and drive industrial and economic growth in the Southwest.
Acting Director General of DAWN Commission, Seye Oyeleye, said that the commission, in partnership with the Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals, was already mapping solid mineral resources in the region for the production of a brochure that can guide investors.
“With the establishment of the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (DAWN), a regional development strategy, covering Ekiti, Lagos, Osun, Ogun, Ondo and Oyo, which has taken a giant stride to make things work out in the South-West even when there are strong challenges, they have been able to engender innovative ideas to give a robust framework for policy development in the six states of the Southwest,” he said.

 

Akinremi Feyisipo, Ibadan