Ondo State government has restated its commitment to collaborating with the diaspora community in channeling investments across vital and viable sectors of the state’s economy for inclusive and rapid growth.
This affirmation was a key outcome of the Ondo Diaspora Virtual Summit titled ‘Develop Ondo 2.1’, held on December 2 and 9, 2023, targeting the state’s indigenes across the world.
Hosted by the state’s Commissioner for Regional Integration and Diaspora Relations, Prince Boye Ologbese, and anchored by Rinsola Abiola, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Citizenship and Leadership, the summit featured notable participants, including senior government officials at the federal level and across the southwest region, traditional heads, dignitaries from the diaspora, renowned private sector representatives with business interests in Ondo state and representatives of key development partners such as UNDP and the European Union.
Anchored by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Citizenship and Leadership, Rinsola Abiola the summit featured notable participants, including senior government officials at the federal level .
And across the southwest region, traditional heads, dignitaries from the diaspora, renowned private sector representatives with business interests in Ondo state and representatives of key development partners such as UNDP and the European Union.
Governor Rotimi Akeredolu, in his keynote address, said that the state recognises its diaspora community as a valuable asset and a crucial development partner.
He urged participants at the summit to identify and leverage investment opportunities within the state, while assuring them of the state’s commitment to protecting their investments through infrastructure availability and an investment-friendly legal and policy framework.
He was represented at the summit by the deputy governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa.
Key sectors highlighted for investment opportunities include the agricultural sector, tech and real estate.
The state’s commissioner for Agriculture and Forestry, Hon. Olatayo Aribo, highlighted the state’s agricultural potential, focusing on land resources and government efforts to enhance productivity and infrastructure.
Ondo State’s Finance Commissioner, Wale Akinterinwa, emphasised the importance of responsible fiscal management while highlighting some of the key investment-friendly attributes of the state, including its coastline status, which gives it direct access to the ocean, the removal of red tape and provisions made for the protection of private property and investments.
DG of the Ondo State Development and Investment Promotion Agency (ONDIPA), Gbenga Badejo, equally emphasised the state’s readiness to facilitate investments from the diaspora by providing structure to capture funding and ensure their successful performance.
The director of Ground Services and Cargo Operations at Green Africa, Tayo Orisadare, one of the leading airlines in the country, attested to Ondo state’s investment readiness and viability.
According to him, Ondo State is the airline’s second most profitable route, an achievement he attributes to the growing fortunes of the state’s citizens and the expanding integration need of its business and political class with other parts of the country, including the Federal Capital Territory.
He described the mutually-beneficial relationship between the state and the airline, noting its deliberate creation of jobs through local recruitments and the state’s rising economic profile.
A real estate investor in Ondo state and director of Business at Redeemed Business District, Adejomi Adegbulugbe, said real estate is a safe investment choice and urged the diaspora community to explore opportunities to store value and reap immense commercial benefits in the future.
He highlighted the success recorded by his firm in a real estate project it embarked on which covers several hectares and offers commercial real estate such as malls, hotels, parks and other amenities.
He attributed the success to government support through policy and reforms, including an efficient and timely certification process.
The director general/CEO of the National Information Technology Development Agency, Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, also gave a detailed address in which he stated the country’s readiness to leverage the skills, network, and influence of its diaspora community in designing a national policy and securing advancement in emerging areas such as Artificial Intelligence and robotics, among others.
He commended the Ondo state government for its productive engagement of its diaspora community and encouraged it to continue its preparation for the future of work and the acceleration of local development through digital transformation by promoting digital skills, technology adoption, and entering productive collaborations with relevant government and private organisations.
There were also contributions by players in the tech sector including Iyin Aboyeji, founding partner at Future Africa and Joel Ogunsola, founder of Prunedge, about the potential of the state capital, Akure, to become the Silicon Valley of Nigeria with increased investments from key sources such as the diaspora.
Some of the state’s peculiar advantages were highlighted, including a functioning airport, coastal access, a strong talent pipeline given the quality of students on campuses such as the Federal University of Technology in Akure (FUTA), an institution that has provided some of the country’s most impactful tech founders.
The chairman of the State Information Technology Agency (SITA), Olumbe Akinkugbe listed some of the state’s overtures to investors to include right of way permit discount, establishment of the Akure Tech Hub to groom talents and build human capital, digitization of internal government processes to optimize systems such as Human Resource management and tax collection for efficient and quality service delivery.
The commissioner and special adviser on health in Ondo state, Dr. Bani Ajaka and Prof. Adadayo Faduyile, also highlighted ongoing efforts by the Akeredolu-led administration to deliver on healthcare reforms such a contributory health insurance scheme, and urged healthcare professionals in the diaspora to contribute to the growth of the sector both via knowledge transfer and direct investment which would facilitate the take-off of the state’s Sunshine Medical City, a project spanning several hectares of land meant to provide integrated medical services to the people and train the next generation of healthcare workers.
DG of the Ondo State Performance and Project Implementation Monitoring Unit (PPIMU), Babajide Akeredolu affirmed the government’s commitment to engaging the diaspora for sustained growth.
He reiterated the government’s central objective of moving the state from a predominantly civil service state to an industrial one.
According to him, this goal guides the government’s interventions in all sectors of its economy and has helped deliver favorable outcomes in living standards and poverty reduction.
In 2022, Ondo State outshined other states in a ranking of states for multidimensional poverty, given its remarkable least incident record.
