Furera Isma Jumare is the Director General of InvestJigawa, the state’s investment promotion agency. Recently, the agency organised an event in Abuja tagged ProJigawa – the Investors’ Roundtable where local and foreign investors explored the investment opportunities in Jigawa State. In this interview, Furera, a seasoned administrator speaks on why investors should choose Jigawa as their investment destination.
What informed the idea of InvestJigawa?
InvestJigawa was created based on the need to mobilise private sector investments into Jigawa State and establish an entity that would coordinate all processes regarding establishing such investments – a one-stop shop. The Jigawa State Advisory Council on Economic Management and Investment Promotion was therefore created in October 2013. It metamorphosed into the Jigawa State Investment Promotion Agency, InvestJigawa, in June 2016. With the establishment of InvestJigawa, it was hoped that the path would be eased for investors interested in operating in the state.
Why are you projecting Jigawa as a preferred business destination in northern Nigeria?
The state has comparative advantage at many levels that should be leveraged on to realise the InvestJigawa vision of the state becoming Nigeria’s preferred investment destination.
Our state is private-sector friendly, with a leadership that has the political will to, and indeed supports intending investors. This is evidenced by our 2nd position ranking in the current World Bank Ease of Doing Business Report. We also have the best road network in Nigeria, which has been validated by the current quality of road index, which ranks us 1st among the Nigeria states. Jigawa State is also one of the safest states in the north, with very little communal strife, restiveness and comparatively very low levels of banditry and similar vices.
Unfortunately, we have not been selling our state’s investment potentials effectively to the world. So, one of my goals is to increase the visibility of Jigawa State, especially in terms of investment opportunities.
In March we hosted an investors’ roundtable in Abuja, which was attended by investors from across the country, the organised private sector, government agencies and members of the diplomatic corps. Since the event, we have been receiving enquiries about investing in the state and have had a few meetings with potential investors. We intend to ramp up communication and marketing activities, to attract and onboard as many investors as possible.
Many Nigerians and foreigners would love to know about the core investment areas in the state, can you mention some of them?
While we welcome all investments that will bring development to our state, our core priority sectors are agribusiness, solid minerals and renewable energy, especially solar. As you are aware, Jigawa State is agrarian, with vast arable land which is already being exploited by investors that are discerning. We are the largest producer of hibiscus and dates, second largest producer of sesame, and one of the largest of gum Arabic and rice.
Apart from that, we have one of the largest livestock markets in Sub-Saharan Africa, at Maigatari, a border town with Republic of Niger. Many more opportunities are waiting to be harnessed in the sector. Jigawa State also has vast mineral resources, where we already have mining licences ready for uptake, for silica, kaolin, syenite, quartzite, soda ash (trona) and granite, with one of the largest granite factories in the country based in the state.
We are also positioning ourselves to be the solar power projects, with our state located around the best solar irradiation area in Nigeria. Jigawa Energy City is a solar park currently being developed in Gwiwa Local Government Area in partnership with the Federal Government. When completed, the 1000MW project will accommodate private sector companies that will produce solar power.
There are also a few large solar investors that have commenced the process of establishing their projects in the state.
Apart from the agribusiness, solid minerals and renewable energy sectors we also promote light manufacturing which we believe would see to the growth of the SMEs sector, a key driver of the economic growth in our state. Having said that, it’s important for me to mention that we have just concluded a sector scan in collaboration with FCDO – LINKS. The study will give us more granular information on the different sectors’ value chains that will point to more areas of opportunity. This will in turn enable us have ready information for potential investors who want to explore various opportunities.
In terms of development and growth, what are your projections for Jigawa in the next 10 years, particularly in the areas of investment?
The administration of Alhaji Muhammed Badaru Abubakar is ensuring fiscal responsibility which I believe will contribute to sustainable development. For example, the Nigerian State Budget Transparency Scores for 2020 ranks Jigawa State 1st, with a wide margin between it and all other states, andcoupled with maintenance of high rankings in the Ease of Doing Business index, I believe that if this trajectory is maintained in 10 years Jigawa State will be industrialised and able to sustain itself without relying so much on FAAC allocations from the centre.
What’s your vision for InvestJigawa?
My vision for InvestJigawa aligns with the vision of the agency, which like I stated before, is for Jigawa State to be Nigeria’s preferred investment destination. I also envisage a state where five years from now, and due to increased foreign or even domestic direct investment, has an appreciable increase in jobs created and IGR.
