Being remarks by His Excellency Seyi Makinde, the Executive Governor of Oyo State, at the Flag-Off of the Construction of Fasola Agribusiness Industrial Hub at Fasola, Oyo West Local Government Area on Friday, June 4, 2021
When we came into government, we were determined to rebuild the Oyo State economy. We chose to use our areas of comparative and competitive advantage to drive the growth of our economy. This was what dictated our choice of agribusiness as one of the drivers.
Our decision was based on available data and logic. Oyo State has the arable land size and the climatic conditions to support all types of agribusiness endeavours. We knew that if we signaled to the investing community through our policies and policy implementation that we are open for business, they would come to us.
And so, we set up and gave life to a new agency – the Oyo State Agribusiness Development Agency (OYSADA) and got a seasoned agribusiness professional, Dr Debo Akande, to run that agency.
This flag-off of the construction of the Fasola Agribusiness Industrial Hub that we are performing today, is a testament to the fact that we made the right decisions. It is proof that when we say “Oyo State is ready for business,” we are not just mouthing meaningless words. Our doors are wide open, come in and talk to us, share your ideas with us. If they are great ideas, we are willing to collaborate with you. So, I am indeed excited to be here.
For this project, we are working with Brains & Hammers, a Nigerian real estate company with proven capacity to execute projects at this scale.
Let me mention at this point that Fasola is just one of the nine farm settlements we have in Oyo State which have been left moribund for years. So, this ceremony we are performing today speaks to another promise that we made to the people of Oyo State. That we will ensure that we recover and extract value from all moribund government assets or abandoned projects.
We really do not care who started the project, we do not care who abandoned the project, we will resuscitate it and give our people value for it. We are determined to put an end to the plague of abandoned and moribund projects littering our investment landscape in Oyo State.
So, here at Fasola Agribusiness Industrial Hub, if you have had the opportunity to go round this land, you will find that it is such an ideal location for an agribusiness and agro tourism hub.
In one year, when we come back to commission this project, this 1,000-acre land would have been transformed into a thriving agribusiness industrial hub with ranching and grazing fields, crop production and processing facilities, and a leisure and entertainment hub including a nine-hole golf course. This place will be self-sufficient, so it will also include a fire station, mini-clinic, innovation hub, and residential real estate.
Like I said before, this is just one of nine. We have already contracted out the Eruwa and Akufo Agribusiness Industrial Hubs. We had major administrative and bureaucratic bottlenecks that delayed work out there but those have finally been cleared and I am sure we will start getting visuals of the work going on there soon. There are six others which we intend to also convert into agribusiness industrial hubs. Also, we have several other tourism sites that can be converted into tourism centres. So, this is another call to remind you that Oyo State is still open for business.
On this note, I declare the construction of Fasola Agribusiness Industrial Hub officially commenced to the glory of God and for the benefit of the good people of Oyo State.
Thank you.
~Seyi Makinde, June 4, 2021