The United Kingdom is partnering with the Nasarawa State government in mining, agriculture, transportation, and education for the infrastructure development of the state.
The British High Commissioner to Nigeria Ms. Catriona Laing stated this during a courtesy visit to the Nasarawa State Governor Abdullahi Sule at the Government House in Lafia, the North central state capital.
According to Laing, the transformation achieved by the state in the area of agriculture was very important to the UK government, saying they were ready to use their expertise to partner with the state for the growth and development of the state.
“There is a good potential for mining in Nasarawa State. Nasarawa has a very unique posture and comparative advantage, especially with its proximity to Abuja.
“Getting in place the rightful enabling environment and how quickly Nasarawa jumped through the ranks to number three in investment flow in the country is quite amazing. Therefore, we would look for areas to partner with Nasarawa State,” she said.
Governor Abdullahi Sule welcomed the collaboration idea between the UK government and the state and expressed optimism that the partnership would yield positively to bring more development to the state.
Sule also noted that the state had developed a Public-Private Partnership forum which has been a veritable tool to foster private sector investment in the state.
“The state secured radical projects in education, transportation, health, mining, and agriculture. We have established the Nasarawa State Infrastructural Fund where 5percent of our Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) would be dedicated mainly to infrastructural development.
“We have also exhibited necessary steps, including working with a UK consortium to prepare a detailed feasibility study to meet with the requirements of the African Development Bank on special agro-industrial processing zones which we are developing in Karu Local Government Area of the state, close to the Federal Capital Territory (FCT),” Governor Sule said.
The governor said the state was committed to developing the agricultural sector through mechanized farming, that soon the state would become a major producer of rice and sugar in Africa.
Meanwhile, the Managing Director, Nasarawa State Investment Development Agency, (NASA), Ibrahim Abdullahi said the state was experiencing an increase in its investment and was ranked among the top three investment states in Nigeria.
“The partnership that Nasarawa State have presented to the UK is of mutual prosperity, this is a welcome from the governor to come and do business in Nasarawa State, Nigeria Home and Solid Mineral, and frontier of business in Nigeria”, he added
Dominica Nwabufo
