WATCHERS of developments in Nigeria’s Gateway State would not have been surprised as the key deliverables itemized by the state governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, when he laid the N703.03b n 2024 budget proposal for before the state House of Assembly last week. A breakdown of the “Budget of Sustained Growth and Development” shows that it has N287.37 bn and N415.66 as recurrent and capital expenditures, respectively. The specifics: N95.05 bn will take care of personnel costs, N27.35 bn is projected as consolidated revenue, while N59.09 bn will cover public debt charges. With N105.88 bn for overhead cost and N415.66 bn for capital expenditure, the appropriation bill projects a lofty16 per cent (N109.219 bn) for education and 12 per cent (N81.185 bn) for health. The sum of N28.886 billion (4 per cent) will go into housing and community development, with N14.218 billion (2 per cent) for agriculture and industry, while N209.122 bn (30 per cent) is allocated to infrastructure. Others are N22.872 bn (3 per cent) for recreation and culture, N28.692 (4 per cent) for social protection, while general public service, executive organ will gulp N31.125 billion, etc.
The key point to note is that the expenditure policy of the government is designed to achieve the strategic objectives of the Ogun State Economic Development Plan and Strategy 2021 – 2025, including fiscal sustainability, human development, food security, improved business environment, energy sufficiency, improving transport infrastructure, and promoting industrialization focusing on Small and Medium Scale Enterprises. Said Governor Abiodun: “The physical capital projects in the 2024 budget include; Light up Ogun Project to include procurement and installation of transformers statewide whilst partnering with the private sector to experience uninterrupted power supply in 24 months. The hosting of the 2024 Ogun National Sports Festival. Construction, rehabilitation, and maintenance of roads across the state including major ones such as Lagos–Ota-Abeokuta Expressway; Ofada-Owode Road, Lagos Garage – Ikangba – Ilese Road, Ota-Lafenwa-Itele-Ayobo Road; Ita Oshin – Ibara Orile – Ijoga Orile – Ibooro – Imasayi Road OPIC Estate Internal Roads, Agbara, 250km Statewide construction in all three (3) senatorial districts road infrastructure to support the 2024 Ogun National Sports Festival.”
In 2024, the government is focusing on the construction of infrastructure at the various economic development clusters, while extending the Lagos Blue Line Metro Rail Project into Agbara and ensuring the well extension of the Lagos Red Line Metro Rail Project to Ijoko and Ifo/Kajola in line with the execution of the State’s multi-modal transport plan under the Lagos-Ogun Joint Development Commission initiative.
Given the massive transformation ongoing in many parts of Ogun State, the key highlights and underpinnings of the Budget 2024 aimed at giving a fillip to Ogun’s emerging status as a giant construction site and Nigeria’s top investment destination have not come as a surprise to the populace. In the last four and a half years, the state has witnessed infrastructure revolution: connecting parts of the state to the capital, the neighbouring states and the outside world through rail, road network and air has been a top priority of the Abiodun administration. For one thing, the Agrocargo International Airport, a specialized facility designed to ease the movement of agricultural produce and create new jobs, generate revenue, and improves food security, is already proving to be a game changer in reversing the damning statistics by the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), namely that Nigeria’s agriculture industry suffers an estimated N3.5 trillion in post-harvest losses every year. Where agripreneurs can quickly and easily transport fresh produce to local/ international markets faster, increased profitability is guaranteed. The airport is expected to create over 25,000 direct and indirect job across the agriculture, transportation, logistics, hospitality, tourism and other sectors.
Beyond facilitating the movement of agric produce, the airport strategically located the along Iperu-Ilishan road in Ikenne Local Government Area of the state and designed to handle imports, exports and passenger traffic will reduce post-harvest losses, facilitate inter-regional and international connectivity for agro produce, increase Ogun State’s forex earnings, and attract massive investments to the state. In just a matter of weeks, commercial activities will start at the airport city. Speaking on the airport, Governor Abiodun said: “With the longest runway, the biggest apron and control tower, the cargo airport is destined to be the best in the country. We have been approached by cargo companies that now want to relocate to Nigeria , simply because they have seen the size of our apron at the airport, which is 84,000 square metres. It is four or five times larger than the largest cargo airport in Nigeria.
“These cargo-based companies have now decided that once the airport is ready, they will be flying their cargoes that are destined for Nigeria to that airport, and from our airport, they will now be trans-shipping the cargoes to the other parts of Nigeria and even West Africa. And when you look at all those that would be involved in these cargo operations in the distribution and in running of our airport from the agro-producing zone and to the Aerotropolis, you can just imagine the economic impacts and the number of jobs that will be created. The impact will resonate in the entire economy, not just this country but the entire Africa.”
The fact is generally uncontested that Ogun is now an investors’ destination: the recent global meeting in Cairo, Egypt, showed that most of the investors that showed interest in Nigeria are actually looking at Ogun State. The way Ogun State is positioned as an investment destination given its proximity to Lagos has also earned it a lot of respect and interest from business experts who are coming to Nigeria to invest. With the kind of budgetary provision for infrastructure, education, agricultural revolution, among others, it is clear that the Abiodun administration has brought a lot of transformation to Ogun State. Only last week, Governor Dapo Abiodun, during a breakfast meeting with Chief Executive Officers of the organised private sector (OPS) OPS in Abeokuta, gave indication of plans to construct the Olokola Deep Seaport located in Ogun Waterside Local Government Area of the state with a view to providing another opportunity for companies in the state to easily convey their goods and equipment, taking advantage of the almost completed Gateway Agro-Cargo International Airport, and the planned dry port to be located at Kajola, an outskirt of the state capital.
It cannot but be cheering news that Ogun under Abiodun will join league of oil-producing states soon. In preparation for this new status, the administration has already established the Ministry of Mineral Resources saddled with the responsibility of overseeing the general administration and operation of the natural resources that abound in the state, and the Ministry of Energy to take advantage of the constitutional amendment that allows sub-national governments to participate in the energy sector. But there’s more: the administration will construct over 2,000 housing units in Warewa, Sagamu, Iperu, Ibara, Ayetoro Road, OGTV Village, Ijebu-Ode, etc, and ensure water reticulation projects to connect more households to potable water supply, having completed the Urban Water Supply Project. And that is the point: budgeting for total transformation.
Akinmade is Special Adviser on Media and Strategy to the Governor of Ogun State.
