Victor EzejaManaging Director/Chief Executive Officer of South East Development Commission (SEDC), Mark Okoye, has highlighted plans of the Commission to boost agricultural activities and ensure food security in the South East region.
Mr Okoye stated this during an interview on TVC Breakfast programme where he spoke on the SEDC’s top priorities and plans for Soth East development.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelOkoye, who was recently appointed to steer the affair of SEDC said the Commission has a philosophy that guides every intervention they make. He said part of it is finding ways to derisk every sector for investment to come in.
In the agricultural sector, Okoye said there are many areas to channel investments but the challenge is that investors in the South East spend about 60 percent of their funds on land clearing, provision of infrastructure such as roads, power supply, drilling water and internal security among others.
This situation, he said, leaves the investors with just about 40 per cent for working capital, which according to him, makes it impossible for them to be competitive.
“So, what are we doing as SEDC? we want to go for intensive land development across agrarian communities in the region. We should be able to feed ourselves and contribute our bit to development,” Okoye stated.
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He further stated that while they are making investments in infrastructure, there is a marketing arm enlightening Nigerians to invest in the sector and make it sustainable. “We want a market-driven growth and not just government. We just want to caytalyse investments in the sector,” he further explained.
He stated that SEDC would apply the same model in other sectors to catalyse growth.
Okoye also spoke on plans of the Commission to build industrial parks across the region. According to him, the last time such was done in the region was in the 1960s under Michael Okpara, who was the Premier of the Eastern region.
He said all the state governments in the region have their development projects which the SEDC would examine and see how it could come in and support them.
“If you have a situation where people are building industries in villages, what that tells you is that there is high demand for industrial infrastructure. So, we would go in, maybe develop some hectares of land, working with a state government, put in five to seven kilometres of internal roads, draw power and tell our people and other investors around the world that they come and bring in their investments.”
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He said a similar approach would be adopted in housing, and market development among others.
In the areas of tackling insecurity which poses a significant threat to investments and economic development, the SEDC MD/CEO said the Commission would collaborate with various state governments to boost security.
He also hinted at plans to strategically engage with Nigerians in the diaspora to ensure that remittances are properly channeled to investments in critical sectors that would catalyse growth in the region.
He revealed that during their meeting with Ms. Elsie Attafuah, Resident Representative, UNDP Nigeria, on Monday, one of the requests they made was the creation of an office for partnerships and diaspora coordination.
He stressed that the creation of such an office would ensure that diaspora remittances are channeled to productive ventures.
Victor Ezeja is a passionate journalist with six years of experience writing on economy, politics and energy. He holds a Masters degree in Mass Communication.
