Vice President Senator Kashim Shettima has said it is time for African nations to take their rightful place in the control of global resources and trade by maximizing the continent’s natural endowments.
The Vice President stated this on Friday in Cotonou, Republic of Benin, during an official tour and assessment of the Glo-Djigbé Industrial Zone, GDIZ, with some Nigerian state governors.
He assured that under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration, no region of Nigeria would be left behind in the renewed industrialization drive.
‘We Will Replicate Benin’s Model In Nigeria’
Senator Shettima said the Tinubu administration, in collaboration with subnational governments, was resolved to leave no stone unturned in massively developing Nigeria.
He expressed satisfaction with the Beninese government’s efforts in mass production and export of its endowed resources.
The VP regretted that “of the $370 billion worth of global cotton, Africa benefits from only about one per cent of that amount.”
According to him, reviving Nigeria’s textile value chain under President Tinubu’s resolve could generate millions of jobs, expand non-oil exports and stimulate economic activity across the country.
“We are here essentially at the behest of His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, in the spirit of his Renewed Hope Agenda to see and do a peer review of global best practice and value addition,” he said.
“We are setting up eight agro industrial zones in eight states in our country and to tell you imperatively that this is an African success story where there is a whole chain of value addition in cotton, cashew and soya bean value chains.
“Be rest assured that we have learnt a lot of lessons through this visit and we are going to replicate a lot of that in Nigeria, as we are focused on becoming one of the industrialized nations in the world, in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Tinubu.”
Tour Of GDIZ, Governors’ Commitment
The delegation was briefed on the zone’s structure, production capacity and investment potential by Benin’s Minister of Tourism and Foreign Trade, in charge of Industry and the Promotion of Private Investment, Mr. Olushegun Adjadi Bakari.
They inspected the zone’s integrated textile and agro-processing facilities, where locally produced cotton is converted into yarn, fabric and finished garments, while cashew and other agricultural commodities are processed for domestic and export markets.
The 1,640-hectare public-private industrial platform, developed by the Beninese government and ARISE Integrated Industrial Platforms, accommodates textile, garment, cashew, soybean and other manufacturing operations. It provides more than 25,000 jobs. Production began in 2021.
The visit forms part of Nigeria’s effort to draw practical lessons from Benin’s success in linking agriculture with manufacturing, attracting private investment and converting raw materials into higher-value finished products.
Governors on the trip were AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq (Kwara); Hope Uzodimma (Imo); Umar Namadi (Jigawa); Umaru Dikko Radda (Katsina); Caleb Mutfwang (Plateau); and Dauda Lawal (Zamfara).
They expressed readiness to explore similar industrial projects in their respective states, noting opportunities for public-private partnerships, youth employment, technology transfer and stronger linkage between farmers and manufacturers.
To commemorate the visit, VP Shettima and the governors planted trees within the industrial zone to underscore environmentally sustainable industrial development.
It’s Time For Africa To Take Rightful Place In Global Trade ~ Shettima
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