Governor Umar Bago, Niger Sate
By Stephen Ojo
The Niger State Government has strongly dispelled fears over the activities of some criminal elements who are engaged in banditry in some remote parts of the state, saying such should not deter investors from taking advantage of the conducive business environment being created by the state government to invest in the state.
The State Commissioner of Industry, Trade and Investment Alhaji Aminu Suleiman Takuma stated this on Monday while briefing the media on the activities lined up for the Nigeria Public Private Partnership Network Meeting scheduled for Minna, the state capital, saying the state is safe for investors and their investments.
“I want to assure investors, especially foreign investors that investments are safe and secured in Niger State. We have been explaining to interested investors who are reading in the media about banditry activities in parts of the state that those areas are far away from from investment zone”, he said.
According to the Commissioner, government operates an opened doors for private partnerships with several investors, adding that tremendous successes have been recorded in some of the investments especially in the areas of agriculture and infrastructure development.
He however advised investors to stay clear from investing in solid minerals exploitation in the state, explaining that the blanket ban on solid minerals extraction in the state by government still subsists.
He said that the order was issued by government to protect the rural people endangered by activities of mining companies most of which are illegal.
He said the state government has in recent months blacklisted a mining company while the company which operated the site that collapsed few weeks would be sanctioned after completion of investigation into the unfortunate incident.
Takuma said that the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume is scheduled to deliver the keynote address, highlighting the critical role of PPPs in our national development strategy while the Executive Governor of Niger State, Farmer Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago will share his vision and initiatives on leveraging PPPs for the development of the state’s infrastructure and economy.