The Federal Government is exploring ways to support businesses in Abia State, particularly those in the textile and garment cluster in Aba and the agricultural sector.
The Special Adviser to the President on Industry, Trade and Investment, John Uwajimogu, disclosed this on Wednesday during a visit to the state Governor, Alex Otti, in his office.
Uwajimogu said the delegation was in the state to deepen engagement with the Abia State Government and explore areas of collaboration that could attract Federal Government projects and investment opportunities.
He said the Federal Government had taken note of Aba’s strong industrial capacity, particularly in textiles and garments, and was exploring ways to support businesses in the sector by addressing major constraints affecting their operations.
“One of the biggest things that we see coming out of Abia State is the strong industrial capacity in Aba, particularly in the textile and garments sector.
“We have been thinking of how, from the federal level, we can support the businesses that are working in that sector and have come up with ideas on how we can address some of the biggest binding constraints that they often face, one being infrastructure and the other one being finance.
“We are also coming to discuss what we can bring to the table and help resolve and address those binding constraints,” Uwajimogu stated.
He added that the Federal Government was interested in bringing its projects and programmes to Abia, noting that the visit was part of efforts to identify areas where both tiers of government could work together to promote economic development.
Also speaking, the Executive Secretary/Chief Executive Officer of the National Agricultural Land Development Authority, Cornelius Adebayo, described Otti as a performer and reformer, stressing that NALDA’s core mandate was poverty alleviation through agriculture.
He said the authority was seeking the support of the Abia State Government, particularly in providing land for its Renewed Hope Mega Farm Estate programme, which is designed to aggregate farmers, provide infrastructure, improve security, facilitate access to inputs and markets, and create sustainable incomes.
Adebayo expressed hope that Abia would host a major NALDA agricultural project, including a processing facility, and appealed to Otti to provide suitable land and support for the initiative.
Responding, Otti expressed the readiness of his administration to collaborate with NALDA and other stakeholders to unlock the agricultural potential of the state.
He noted that Abia, despite its limited landmass, possessed fertile and arable land capable of supporting the cultivation of crops such as cassava, yam, cocoyam, oil palm and cashew.
Otti said the initiative aligned with his administration’s vision, noting that food importation placed additional pressure on the foreign exchange market and stressing the need to revive local production through deliberate investment in agriculture.