‘Gombe’s Top Spot In Ease Of Doing Business A Result Of Inuwa’s Innovations, Determination’, Says Presidency
By Ben Ngwakwe, Gombe
The Special Adviser to the President on Ease of Doing Business and Secretary of the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council, PEBEC, Dr Jumoke Oduwole, extolled the administrative ingenuity of Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya and his cabinet for churning out realistic policies and plans that earned the State top spot in the ease of doing business in the country.
Oduwole revealed that based on a methodological home grown base line survey conducted, Gombe State came top in infrastructure and transparency, security, electricity, transportation and Primary Health Care, accessibility to information via Investment promotion, regulatory environment as well as skills and development.
Speaking in Gombe on Wednesday during the flagging-off of Gombe State Investment Summit, She said, Gombe earned the top spot, not because of geographical location or any other consideration, but by what is being done, strong leadership and cohesion in the managerial circle which brought positive results.
With huge optimism and a firm belief in the vast economic potentials of Gombe State, according to the statement by Ismalia Uba Misilli, Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya scored another first, as he flagged-off the maiden Gombe Investment Summit tagged GoInvest 2022.
At the opening ceremony of the three day conference with participants from Nigeria and outside the country, Governor Inuwa Yahaya reeled out the huge potentials of Gombe even as he flaunted its credentials as the Best in the Ease of Doing Business in Nigeria and the Safest and most peaceful State in North East.
The Governor observed that the place of Gombe in commerce, industry and tourism is well established, as throughout history, the State has continued to capture the imagination of traders, business caravans and enterprising wanderers from within and outside Nigeria.
“Our position is boosted by Gombe’s strategic location at the center of the north-east subregion and proximity to neighboring countries around the Lake Chad basin, enterprising and peace-loving population, unity in diversity, comparative advantage in agriculture, commerce, and abundance of natural resource like limestone, gypsum, uranium, coal, crude oil, kaolin, etc. Gombe also boast of great potentials in irrigation and hydropower generation through the Dadin Kowa, Balanga and Cham dams.
“In the same vein, we also realized that in order to put our state on the path of sustainable progress and long-term prosperity, we must strategically invest in both human capital and infrastructural development.
With the theme, “Industrialisation: the Pathway to Innovation, Transformation and Development of Gombe” Governor Inuwa said, in addition to its numerous empowerment programs for SMEs, “we are partnering with local and international stakeholders to provide cheap and affordable financing for our entrepreneurs.”
He observe that human capital development will enable his administration to equip the teeming youths with the requisite skills, knowledge and expertise to succeed in the rapidly changing digital world.
“To this end, we are working to leverage on digital skills and opportunities to develop Gombe into a regional ICT hub in order to harness the creative energies of our youths. On the other hand, solid and resilient infrastructure is being put in place to serve as catalyst for industrialisation and growth, unlock opportunities and deliver sustainable prosperity to the people. This is evident in our numerous interventions in the education and health sectors through the constructions and upgrade of schools and hospitals, construction of rural and urban roads under the Network 11-100 project, the Gombe Mega Motor Park project, the Gombe Regional Water Expansion Scheme, and most importantly, the Muhammadu Buhari Industrial Park. The 1000-hectare mega industrial facility is strategically located along the linking point of transport and energy infrastructure. It is expected to help consolidate Gombe’s position as the industrial hub of the North-east subregion,” he said.
Earlier in an address of welcome, Gombe State Deputy Governor and Chairman of the Steering committee of the Summit, Dr. Manassah Daniel Jatau said the summit was organized in order to showcase and highlight all the potentials and opportunities that abound to investors and convince them to come and do business in State.
He appealed to the Federal Government, Investors and all Stakeholders to “dip your buckets where you are” to ensure the success of this Summit, which is crucial for the progressive change in the lives of residents of Gombe, the North-East Geopolitical Zone and the country at large.
Meanwhile the event was attended by both local and foreign investors, development partners, financial institutions, members of the business community among others.
