Awka, May 10, 2023 The Anambra Government says it will harness the comparative advantage of the 21 Local Government Areas (LGAs) in resource endowments to drive its industrialisation efforts.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Mr Mark Okoye, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Anambra State Investment Promotion and Protection Agency (ANSIPPA), said this at a meeting with LGA chairmen and Head of Planning Department in Awka on Wednesday.
Okoye said the government was gathering data on investment potentials and moribund factories across the LGAs in the state with a view to finding a way of returning them to optimal productivity.
He regretted the illegal exploration of natural resources in the state and urged the local government transition chairmen to help guard these resources and mainstream them into the state economic development plan.
According to him, ANSIPPA wishes to engage with you in areas of identification of investment opportunities across the communities and compilation of major industries and opportunities to be included in the our database.
“Data gathering of industries and other relevant investments across LGAs through tracking of permits for buildings as well as identification and reporting of abandoned industries in Anambra,” he said.
He tasked the council chairmen to strengthen and fund their planning and data gathering departments quality and up-to-date data while assuring that the interface would be a regular event.
On his part, Mr TonyCollins Nwabunwanne, Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, said the partnership between ANSIPPA and the Local Government system would yield huge positive impact if well harnessed.
Nwabunwanne said Anambra was blessed with abundant natural resources which were yet to be tapped to full potential.
The commissioner advocated that local governments should be supported to produce more of those items in which they were most richly endowed.
According to him, interacting with communities on its individual investment potentials and raw material deposits will go a long way in promoting Anambra as number one investment destination in Nigeria.
“We need to partner with the grassroots to identify these resources/raw materials and market them to potential investors.
“The essence of this is that we want to know how to better engage with you to identify and promote the opportunities in your locality.
“The information you provide will in more ways than one, play a vital role to how Anambra will approach development, so let us participate fully,” he said.
In his remark, Ikenna Aniagboso, Transition Chairman of Nnewi South LGA, said the initiative was a welcome development.
Aniagboso decried illegal mining activities going on in the area which had become businesses between some communities and excavating companies.
He said the state would gain a lot if Kaolin deposit was being mined and sold at the market values.
Other stakeholders commended Gov. Chukwuma Soludo for his efforts to rid the state of criminal elements but noted that security was a prerequisite for inflow and sustainability of investment.
