Tag: Obiano

Obi of Onitsha Igwe Nnaemeka Achebe   will on Monday, October 3 deliver the Anambra State 25th Anniversary Lecture, entitled, “Think Nigeria, Invest in Anambra – Aku Luo Uno”.

The lecture, the Organising Committee of the Anambra at 25, headed by Anambra State Deputy Governor Dr. Nkem Okeke, disclosed, is to woo  Anambra indigenes and other people from the southeast geopolitical zone to invest in Anambra, in line with the blueprint of Governor Willie Obiano administration which encourages indigenous investors to take advantage of the vast investment opportunities in agriculture, industry, trade,  commerce and oil and gas sectors in the state.

Obiano had in 2015, established the Anambra State Investment Promotion and Protection Agency (ANSIPPA),  a one-stop service center that structures and facilitates business partnerships between the state and private investors.

This agency which has Chief Joe Billy Ekwunife,  as the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer ( MD/CEO), provides information, support and guidance to prospective investors, implements aftercare strategy and also provides a project equity contribution in the form of land, other intangibles and basic infrastructure such as access roads, in order to ease the burden on investment in the state.

A number of indigenous investors, as documented in ANSIPPA brochure, have benefited from this arrangement. These include, Coscharis Farms limited, promoted by Dr. Cosmas Maduka, with investment of $120 million, Falcon Corporation Limited, which invested $ 100million, Joseph Agro Limited ($150million), Cardinal Developers ($98million), Richbon Nigeria Limited, with investment of $70million and several others.

The lecture will kick-off the second phase of the anniversary celebration which started with a world press conference addressed by Governor Obiano, on Friday, August 26, 2016, at the Government House, Awka.

This second phase of the four-month long anniversary celebration programme, according to the coordinator of the Anambra at 25 events, Chief Emeka Okonkwo, is fashioned to draw attention to the “rich tourism potentials of Anambra state, especially in this period of economic difficulty which calls for diversification and creativity in the revenue drive of the state”, in line with the desire of Obiano administration, to depend less on the monthly Federal Allocation from Abuja.

Okonkwo,  while addressing the traditional rulers of the 179 communities in Anambra State, at the Government House, Awka, Anambra State capital,   on behalf of the Organising Committee, said: “The Anambra @25 Committee wants to use this historic silver jubilee of our dear state to showcase not only  our rich cultural heritage, natural endowments but also our unique tourisms potentials.

“Tourism all over the world is a big business. Many countries around the globe derive huge revenue from tourism and Anambra with it’s diverse tourism endowments,  should rightly be on the front role of tourism sector in Nigeria if  the sector is well developed, essential as government has provided the enabling environment for it to thrive.

”We are grateful to the government of His Excellency, Governor Willie Obiano, for the decisive manner it fought against criminality and insecurity in Anambra state in the past two years. Now with a secured Anambra, we will no longer be afraid to invite our brothers, sisters, friends and other tourism enthusiasts from within and outside the shores of Nigeria to come and have a feel of tourism in Anambra state,” adding that developing and harnessing the tourism potentials in Anambra will not only earn the state extra revenue but also stimulate economic activities in the regions that  host the numerous tourism sites in the state.

Okonkwo also disclosed that the anniversary celebration is at no cost to the state government as sponsorship cost is borne by private individuals and corporate bodies who are using the opportunity of the historic event to identify with Anambra State.

Obi of Onitsha Igwe Nnaemeka Achebe   will todaydeliver the Anambra State 25th Anniversary Lecture, titled: “Think Nigeria, invest in Anambra – Aku Luo Uno”.

The lecture, according to the Organising Committee of the Anambra at 25, headed by Anambra State Deputy Governor Dr. Nkem Okeke, is to woo  Anambra indigenes and other people from the Southeast to invest in the state, in line with the blueprint of Governor Willie Obiano’s administration. The blueprint encourages indigenous investors to take advantage of the vast opportunities in agriculture, industry, trade,  commerce and oil and gas sectors in the state.

Last year, Obiano established the Anambra State Investment Promotion and Protection Agency (ANSIPPA),  a one-stop service center that structures and facilitates business partnerships between the state and private investors.

The agency, which has Chief Joe Billy Ekwunife,  as its Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (MD/CEO), offers information, support and guidance to prospective investors, implements aftercare strategy and also provides a project equity contribution in the form of land, other intangibles and basic infrastructure such as access roads, in order to ease the burden on investment in the state.

A number of indigenous investors, as documented in ANSIPPA brochure, have benefited from this arrangement. They include: Coscharis Farms Limited, promoted by Dr. Cosmas Maduka, with investment of $120 million; Falcon Corporation Limited, which invested $100 million; Joseph Agro Limited ($150 million); Cardinal Developers ($98 million); Richbon Nigeria Limited ($70 million) and several others.

The lecture will kick-off the second phase of the anniversary which began with a world press conference addressed by the governor Obiano on August 26 at the Government House in Awka.

•Governor introduces new policies

Anambra State Governor Willie Obiano has abolished the imposition of illegal levies in public primary and secondary schools.

Also, the state has suspended the sale of consolidated emblems, the collection of hawker’s permit on streets and the collection of wheel barrow tax in markets.

The governor said his administration took the action to reduce the impact of recession on households.

The decisions were contained in a special broadcast on the Economic Stimulus Package by the Obiano administration, which the governor announced yesterday at the Governor’s Lodge in Awka, the state capital.

Obiano said: “My role as your governor is to envisage challenges and provide solutions that will ensure a speedy comeback from difficult situations that require the power and might of a state government.

“This is what my administration has done in the past two years through ASBA, the Anambra Small Business Agency.

“This agency is a very important institution that I created to serve as a catalyst for our domestic economy. So far, ASBA has effectively distributed N1.5 billion as start-up capital to many small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs) and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) in Anambra State.

“These funds are part of the N2 billion the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) made available to states about two years ago to stimulate local entrepreneurship across the country.

“ASBA was set up with a credible manpower and a strategic focus on the productive sectors.

“I must thank the CBN for demonstrating a great foresight with that credit scheme. I hope that when we knock on its door again soon, it shall be opened onto us since Anambra has managed the last drawdown well through ASBA.

“Although it may not be known to many people, the truth is that the famous Anambra rice owes its growth to our intervention through ASBA. So many other manufacturers have also benefitted from this initiative. Therefore, arising from the highly visible success recorded by ASBA, we shall carry out the following policies to provide relief to the productive sectors and stimulate the domestic economy.”

Those reliefs, according to the governor, were to provide ASBA with a minimum of N3 billion to lend to SMEs and MSMEs at nine per cent interest rate across key sectors.

Obiano said his administration would re-channel the Bank of Industry (BOI), Bank of Agriculture and Commercial Agriculture Credit Scheme funds totalling about N1.5 billion to support the key sectors.

The governor added that ASBA would handle it, as usual, and follow the standard modalities.

He also announced the plannd roll-out of the CBN Anchor Borrowers Programme to support SME and MSMEs in the Agricultural sector.

A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Justin Okafor, has said Anambra State Governor Willie Obiano’s aides are “misguided”.

The politician said he was reacting to a statement by Mr. Arinzechukwu Awogu, whom he described as the “13th of the 15 Senior Special Assistants (SSAs) to Obiano on Politics”.

The governor’s aide allegedly wrote that the Igbo should ostracise former Governor Peter Obi for saying former President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration gave the Igbo an identity.

The report was said to have been published in many newspapers.

In a statement yesterday, Okafor said: “As already reported in various newspapers, Obi merely called for unity among the Igbo and eulogised former President Jonathan, under whose government the Igbo rose to the highest peak in various arms of the military and who also equitably appointed Igbo into various positions they could not occupy under previous governments. He also remembered him for according Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu unparalleled care and burial thereafter.”

The PDP chief said the governor’s aide should have reported the news of joy during the presentation of an award by the congress to Obi for his exemplary governance in Anambra State and for his commitment to the progress of Igbo land and the ovation that greeted his speech.

He noted that former President Jonathan would have been given an award but for his absence.

On the state of the Enugu-Onitsha dual carriage way, which Obiano’s aide decried, Okafor said the head bridge at Upper-Iweka-Zik’s Roundabout – parts of Umunya – were worse before Obi rehabilitated them and got reimbursed.

Okafor said: “Even before he handed over, Obi also secured permission and was doing the Amansea-Amawbia Roundabout. If the spirit of continuity was followed, by now, the Anambra State Government would have completed the stretch of road with the money set aside by Obi and with reimbursement assured.”

On other achievements, Okafor said the Southeast was dear to Jonathan, who he said did a lot on erosion control, the upgrade of Akanu Ibiam International Airport, siting of federal establishments, including the Naval base at Odekpe, Onitsha, the commencement of the Second Niger Bridge, among others.

“Because of this, Obi expressed hope and indeed called on the congress to remain prayerful for   President Muhammadu Buhari to continue on the same line,” Okafor said.