Food Security: Enugu Set To Assemble 1000 Tractors Locally

By Ayodele Oni

Enugu state Governor, Peter Mbah, has announced that the state will assemble 1,000 tractors locally by next year.

The governor stated that this was part of his administration’s effort to grow the state’s economy from $4.4bn to $30bn and ensure food security.

Mbah, who disclosed that 300 tractors will be ready this year, reiterated his administration’s commitment to creating a business-friendly environment and helping to de-risk investment in the state.

The governor stated this when he received the newly elected president of the Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) Dr. Ifeanyi Okoye, and other leaders of the association in Enugu.

He called on investors to key into the growing investment revolution in the state.

“We are ready for business and we are open for business. You could not make a better choice  than Enugu when you are thinking about where to invest or where to grow your wealth.

“This is because you are dealing with a government that is business-friendly and we do not only think about creating the environment for businesses to thrive, we are also interested in working with you collaboratively either as a Joint Venture (JV) or Private Public Sector Partnership (PPP) or even helping you to de-risk the investment flow.

“We are interested in listening to you, knowing what areas that would make it possible for you to invest.

“We have just signed an order with a Danish company that is coming here to manufacture their tractors.

“So, our target is that before the end of the year, we would  have been able to assemble over 300 tractors. Our ultimate target  in the medium term is to get up to 1,000 tractors before  the end of next year.

“In the area of roads, our target is to make sure that all our streets, all our roads in the city are paved and we are already achieving that.

“Just recently, we completed the 71 roads we awarded last October and we again awarded another 141 roads.

“We are also making sure that we get our rural roads paved, most importantly the access road to the farmlands because we have some ambitious target in our agricultural sector where we now have over 300,000 hectares of land in our landbank.”

Speaking earlier, the NECA leadership pledged commitment to foster partnerships that will catalyse socio-economic development in Enugu State and the South East, having observed the governor’s vision and business-minded approach to governance.

“We have closely observed your outstanding leadership, coupled with your clear vision for the transformation of Enugu State.

“Your administration’s focus on economic diversification, infrastructure development, and human capital enhancement aligns perfectly with NECA’s objectives.

“We believe that through strong collaboration between the public and private sectors, we can collectively drive growth, create jobs, and improve the overall well-being of the citizens.”