Ogun State has become a Mecca for investors, having attracted a total of 50 new firms and investments worth $10 billion since the inception of the Ibikunle Amosun administration.
Bimbo Ashiru, commissioner for commerce and industry, disclosed this during a get-together meeting between the National Assembly and the private sector, represented by the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI).
According to Ashiru, this was an indication of a clement business environment in Ogun, as the continuing improvement in the investment in the state should be extended nationally.
Investors in Agbara had even committed some of their resources to developing the area as they recently agreed to contribute 30 percent to a road construction while the government contributes 70 percent, Ashiru said, stating that the road would soon be commissioned.
Ogun is currently considered an investment hub, especially for manufacturers who now are ramping up investments on plant there, while having offices in Lagos or any other part of the country.
Agbara, particularly, has become an industry cluster and is developing into a mega city, with hotels and businesses.
Recently, the West African Ceramics Limited pledged a $50 million investment there, even when its head office is at Ajaokuta, Kogi State. Procter & Gamble (P&G) is investing $300 million for the establishment of its plant for the production of personal care products.
So many other firms have also announced investments in the city or have already begun production. Firms such as Unilever, Evans Medical, Tower Group, among others, also have plants in the state. Due to the influx of firms in the state, Ogun has Ota-Agbara Chamber of Commerce and Abeokuta Chamber of Commerce, unlike the practice in some states where there is only one chamber of commerce.
On her part, Sola Oworu, commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Lagos State, said the state had established a public-private partnership office because the present government believed that the private sector should be left with what it knew how best to do, while the government should only be burdened with creating the right atmosphere for business, adding that as the country moved into a transition period, law enforcement and level-playing ground for all stakeholders needed to be a priority.
She said the state had established a corporate assembly, which provided a platform for officials to listen to agitations and issues raised by the business community while giving reports on the ones that had been treated.
ODINAKA ANUDU
