Shimite Love, Special Adviser to the Delta State Governor on Trade and Export (SPADTE) has said that the State Government under Sheriff Oborevwori has no plan to establish manufacturing firms, but to create enabling environment for businesses to thrive in the State.
The Special Adviser on Trade and Export made the statememt against the backdrop of the outcry raised by concerned citizens, who have continued to lament over dearth of manufacturing companies in the State, asking the Government to do something in that regard.
At a radio programme in Warri where the Special Adviser on Trade and Export, appeared as a guest speaker, some concerned citizens that phoned in, raised some issues about the need to establish manufacturing firms, but Love said that the Government was aiming at industrializing the State.
“We are trying to industrialize from small to large. So, small and cottage industries all the way to massive factories. That is what my Office is set to do. You need infrastructures and there is a lot of infrastructures going on. To get things from farms to markets, a lot of roads were done in Delta North in the last Administration.
“Now, we are getting good roads being done in Delta South and seeing it done towards Delta Central. So, we need good road network for trades to happen. It makes a lot easier for goods to move. Now, what you need to do as a government minus creating enabling environment is to help with ideal bank.
“The way God has made us – one person will have money, one person will have idea, one person will have energy and one person will have marketing because we were made to work together.
“The reason we were not moving the way we should in this side of town is that one person wants to be the marketer and at the same time the chief executive officer. It doesn’t work that way. You must partner. Sole proprietorship is not good for big time trade and export.
“You have to work with other people. So, to do good export business, you have to look at logistics, cold value chain, cold house, cold room so that we can get our fish, crabs, prawns, crayfish well stored to move; and we already have an airport that is a Cargo Airport.
“So, when you’re ready, we have everything in Warri Port. There’s a lot of works we can do with these smaller vessels.
“Let’s start with what we have and we are not far from Onne Port in Rivers State. We can still sell interstate. We can sell to ECOWAS region which is one of the places my office is looking at. You don’t have to get your product to London before it is called export trade.”
