The Nasarawa State government has announced that efforts were underway to commission the 4,000 metric tons Lithium processing plant in the state.
Abdullahi Sule, the executive governor of Nasarawa state disclosed this during a press briefing in Abuja on Tuesday, while unveiling the second edition of the state investment summit.
According to the governor, the project was part of the several ongoing projects in the state aimed to usher in a new era of industrial growth and prosperity.
He said, “the second edition of the investment summit is aimed to build stronger private public partnerships (PPPs), enhanced investment opportunities, as well as promote sustainable and inclusive development among other goals.”
According to him, the summit which is built on the success of the inaugural summit in 2022, will create and expand on existing pathways for leveraging the industrial, agricultural and mining potential of the state for inclusive and sustainable wealth creation.
He explained that the summit themed ‘The Industrial Renaissance’, reflects the aspirations of Nasarawa State to usher in a new era of industrial growth and prosperity, having built some of the key fundamentals required to drive its industrialisation agenda.
“The theme underscores the state government’s recognition of the pivotal role that industrialization plays in driving economic development, creating employment opportunities, and improving the quality of life for its citizens.
“Expected outcomes from the #NIS2024 includes enhanced investment opportunities, strengthened Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) by bringing together senior government officials, industry leaders, and investors, the summit seeks to foster collaborations and partnerships that can drive the implementation of key projects and initiatives.
“Others include Infrastructure development, policy formulation and reforms, knowledge exchange and capacity building, sustainable and inclusive development.
“Through discussions and sessions focused on regional infrastructure needs and challenges, the summit aims to identify priority infrastructure projects essential for supporting industrial activities in Nasarawa State (and neighbouring States), with a view to establishing meaningful collaboration, and mobilizing investments and resources for their implementation.
“The #NIS2024 will re-emphasize the importance of sustainable development principles, including environmental conservation, social inclusion, and responsible resource management, with the aim of ensuring that the economic growth agenda of the State is pursued in a manner that is environmentally sustainable and socially equitable,” he said.
Sule further said that the summit signifies the commitment of the government to revitalize and modernize the state’s economic landscape, while positioning it as a dynamic hub for industry, commerce, and innovation.
In his remarks, Ibrahim Abdullahi, the managing director of Nasarawa Investment &Development Agency (NASIDA) explained the first edition of the summit, held in March 2022 was launched as a biannual platform to showcase the investment opportunities in Nasarawa state.
He noted that the state, through the first edition received investment pledges worth about $500 million, many of which have reached an advanced stage of crystallising.
“As you know when investment pledges announcements are made, there will to be granular, technical work that will be done by both the investors team and government’s team to make sure that these investments come to light.
“Notably are the National agro commodities project, land acquisition has been done projects about to kick off, the Nasarawa technology village phase one has been launched by His Excellency the governor, the Green vile gas hub project first of its kind, in that region will be commissioned just before the summit in May.
“Many more pockets of small to medium businesses across retail and agriculture have come into the state as a result of the very ambitious and laudable policies being put in place by the government to attract both domestic and foreign investments in the state.
“And since then, there’s a huge lithium rush in Nasarawa states with an influx of investors into mineral sector, just before the summit, the governor will lead other leaders in the country to launch the ongoing Lithium processing plant. These are some of the revolution is being done to revitalise the economy of Nasarawa state,” he said.
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