1. Communiqué Issued at the End of the 2011 Ekiti state Economic &
Development Summit Held at Bishop Adetiloye Hall, Ado-Ekiti on 14th and
15th October 2011.
Ekiti State is endowed with a lot of natural, human and material resources, yet
the state is characterised by low productivity, investment and income, with
majority of the people living in relative poverty. With a sense of urgency to
transform the often-touted potentials of the State for economic growth and
development into reality, the Governor Dr John Kayode Fayemi-led
administration inaugurated the first Ekiti State Economic and Development
Summit 2011 aimed at stimulating investments in order to make poverty
history in the State within the shortest possible time.
The summit was held at the Bishop Adetiloye Hall, Ado Ekiti, on Friday 14th
and Saturday 15th October, 2011 and coordinated under the leadership of Mrs
Bunmi Dipo-Salami (Special Adviser to the Governor on planning and
Millennium Development Goals MDG) with the theme “Harnessing
opportunities for sustainable Development”.
The sub-themes of the summit were:
• Opportunities in Ekiti State for Foreign and Indigenous Entrepreneurs
• Development Partners and Economic Development in Ekiti State:
Progress and Framework for Future Collaboration
• Framework for and available opportunities in Public Private Partnership
towards Infrastructure Development in Ekiti State
• Education as a driver of Economic Growth and Development: Our
Strategy and Opportunities
• Stimulating and Sustaining Agric Business in Ekiti State
• Framework for and Opportunities for Sustainable Private Sector
Participation in Solid Minerals and Tourism Development in Ekiti State
and
• State-owned Enterprises as a vehicle for economic development:
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2. Framework for Private Participation
• The goals of the summit included to:
• Identify critical legislative gaps to be filled in attaining the economic
ambitions of Ekiti State
• Unveil infrastructure development plans for the State Government and
highlights, the opportunities for Private Sector Participation
• Identify the strategies to involve private capital in the regeneration of
our educational heritage
• Examine how Public Policy and Private Capital can combine to
stimulate and sustain commercial agric business in Ekiti State
• Examine the framework for stimulating private participation; and
• Make available opportunities in the solid minerals and tourism sectors
• Review the framework for ownership and management of these
enterprises; and
• Present opportunities for private sector collaboration in realising the
ambitions for the assets and organisations in this sector.
The two-day Summit was well-attended by investors from private and public
sectors, business tycoons, corporate bodies, and farmers, as well as Ekiti
Indigenes resident all over Nigeria as well as from the Diaspora, and capped
with a State Banquet that was chaired by Prince Julius Adelusi-Adeluyi.
Prof Pat Utomi, of the Lagos Business School, Pan African University
delivered the key note address titled “Unconventional Strategies for achieving
rapid and Sustainable Development and Growth of a small Sub-National
Economy”, where he identified, inter alia , improper focus, lack of commitment
of government officials to responsibilities and embezzlements of public funds
as major hindrances to economic development in Nigeria.
He suggested a disciplined farmer approach, unification and commitment of all
stakeholders, reforming the mindset of public servants and politicians, building
capacity for execution as keys to economic development. He opined that the
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3. goals of a state must be set in a smart mode on annual basis. These goals must
be measurable, attainable, relevant and tangible.
He offered a framework of six critical variables that makes for economic
growth. These are: Policy Choices, Institutions; Human Capital,
Entrepreneurship; Culture and Leadership; a strong commitment to which will
make Ekiti economically prosperous. He solicited for the advancement in
Agriculture alongside Mining, Tourism and an Education Industry.
After extensive deliberations on papers presented, participants made the
following observations and recommendations on the various sub-themes of the
Summit:
General Government Intervention So Far in Promoting Opportunities in
Ekiti State for Foreign and Indigenous Entrepreneurs.
In priming the Summit, several Government presenters identified areas of
investment available for public and private investors such as Agriculture,
fisheries, poultry, food processing, solid minerals such as Granite, Uranium
and Gold and Tourism Hospitality business, Small and Medium-Scale
Enterprises (SME) Sector and Education sector. They also revealed that in
order to attract investors to Ekiti State, the Government had embarked on the
following measures:
• Passing of enabling laws such as Freedom of Information law, Fiscal
Responsibility Law, and public private partnership
• Awarding of ten new roads construction with work to commence as
soon as the rains are over
• Provisioning of silos for grain preservation
• Giving of tax moratorium and early issuance of Certificate of
Occupancy (C of O) to encourage investors
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4. • Renewing partnership with some bodies such as : DFID, UN, EU and
USAID
In the area of those identified partnerships, current interventions with
development partners in Ekiti State include:
1. DFID (UK’s Department for International Development): It has helped
in setting up Bureau of Transformation and Private Sector Development
initiatives.
2. World Bank: It has been helping in the area of health, poverty
reduction, governance, capacity building, HIV/Aids reduction.
3. European Union: It has been helping in the areas of infrastructural
development, Water & Sanitation. It is now working in II Communities
in the State.
4. African Development Bank ADB: It has been assisting in developing
Multinational NERICA rice and NPFS (National Program for Food
Security).
5. USAID: it had been helping in areas of OVC (Orphans and Vulnerable
Children) and Management Science for Health (MSH).
6. UNICEF: It is assisting in areas of OVC by HIV/Aids, women and
related issues. 2011/2012 MOU had been signed with the State
Government.
7. UN System: MTF (Medium-Term Framework) has been developed,
which outlines how the State can collaborate and work with the various
United Nations systems. The agreement will be signed in the next few
weeks. The objective of the MTF was to avoid possible duplication of
functions among the UN systems.
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5. Framework for and available opportunities in Public Private Partnership
towards Infrastructure Development in Ekiti.
The Summit identified the following areas to be addressed include:
1. Water Sector
• Refurbishment of water facilities in the State back to their original
designed production capacity
• Expansion of water production, distribution coverage and reticulation of
Ado scheme
• Completion of the on-going N1 billion MDG2009 water projects
covering Ado, Erijiyan, Ipole- Iloro, Efon, Ido-Ile and Okemesi
• Completion of the turnaround maintenance of the Ureje (Ado)
Headwork
• Provision and Installation of a 2, 500KVA power plant for Ero dam
• Turn around maintenance of Itapaji, Egbe, and Ero water scheme
• Replacement of 25km of trunk line from Itapaji to Ikole through
external funding
• Replacement of the Ifaki- Ado pipeline
2. Power sector: Intervention in the supply and distribution of power to
the State through independent power project
3. Public buildings: Construction of a civic centre that would have a
museum, meeting halls, amphi theatre, cinema, library and green rest
areas in Ado-Ekiti.
4. Construction of a new model market with shopping mall, office block as
a replacement for the existing open market in Ado-Ekiti
5. Establishment of mechanic villages
6. Road Networks: Provision of good road networks in the State to
enhance transportation of farm products.
7. Education as a driver of Economic Growth and Development:
Summit strongly emphasised that drivers of economic growth and development
were both the products of education themselves (quality graduates, innovations
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6. and inventions), as well as the opportunities that exist in creating them. It
therefore made the following recommendations, inter alia:
• Meeting student’s basic needs in terms of uniform, books, computers,
transportation and conducive learning environment.
• Pre and post service training of both academic and non-academic staff
and provision of instructional materials
• Ensuring the use of curriculum that is relevant and adaptable to Ekiti
State
• Provision of modern, adequate and suitable teaching/ learning facilities
(classrooms, laboratories, lecture halls) through donations for renovation
and new constructions
• Provision of suitable and adequate Living and recreational facilities,
hostels, common rooms, and stadiums
• Adequate and timely delivery of fees, grants, aids or loans
• Ensure a transparent and stable governance at the public and private
sector
• Ensure a consistent and comprehensive community participation in
governing and financing the educational sector
• Encouraging the private sector investment in providing transport
facilities, book publishing, building cloth factory and accommodation
• provision of science kits for primary and junior secondary school
• upgrading the government technical college at Ado-Ekiti to a vocational
centre of excellence
• providing incentives to teachers posted to rural areas
• Turn the educational system to a source of wealth creation
8. Stimulating and Sustaining Agric Business in Ekiti State
Summit strongly concluded that Agribusiness can be sustained in Ekiti through
the adoption of Public Private Partnership (PPP). Action plans for sustainable
commercial agriculture include the following:
• A stable policy enabling environment for PPP
• Training of extension staff on PPP
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7. • The need to provide market information and standardization
• Provision of good roads, power and silo
• Provision of a strong and good data base for planning
• Ensure availability of land for investors
• Government must focus on selected strategic arable crops, in the first
phase of the Agricultural Movement, based on current agro-technology
and farmers’ familiarity - rice, maize, cassava and yam tuber and for
tree crops –cocoa and kolanut
• Heavy investment in the procurement and propagation of quality
seedlings for free distribution to farmers
• There is the need for linkage between the Universities in Ekiti,
Ministries of Agric and Education, Science and Technology
• Need to establish and sustain Seed Nurseries in all the 16 LGAs
• Government to empower the Ministry of Agriculture and related
Agencies to expand the current farmers support program – inputs, land
clearing, market management and information systems
• The Rivers/reservoir systems must be audited for sustainable predatory
load and stocked with fingerlings
• River/Reservoir beds must be reclaimed for farming year round with
simple surface intake irrigations systems
• Particular attention must also be given to the seeds in the livestock and
fisheries subsector with procurement, domiciliation and propagation of
fish seeds, especially, the YY Male Tilapia for free distribution for
aqua-culture, farming and rivers and reservoir stocking
• There is the need for domestication and propagation of grand and parent
stock for poultry – e.g. NAPRI Shika brown poultry and the NAPRI
breed of cattle and other proven domestic breeds or domesticated
imported breeds. [NAPRI - National Animal Production Research
Institute]
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8. Framework for and Opportunities for Sustainable Private Sector
Participation in Solid Minerals and Tourism Development in Ekiti
Summit made several recommendations here, including to:
• Identify and focus on 3 solid minerals for immediate attention of the
government programmes – granite, Gemstones, Clay - and ensure value
added processing
• Identify unallocated mineral deposit blocks to encourage investors
apply and develop some of the solid mineral blocks available in the
State.
• Set up State owned minerals promotion company and State mineral
resources and environmental management committee
• Establishment of a solid minerals development backed by law
• Stimulate and promote investments and exploration activities through:
i. Ekiti Investment Development Co. Ltd
ii. Ekiti Chambers of Commerce (Solid Minerals Forum)
iii. Ekiti Economic Development Council
iv. Facilitate, engage, encourage and provide enabling investment
environment for the existing exploration license owners to start
preliminary survey and commercial exploration activities in Ekiti State.
v. Take stock of existing exploitation of minerals in the State by artisan ,
small scale and illegal miners with the aim to register, organize, control
and normalize the mining activities with the Mining Cadastral Office in
Abuja
vi. Organize training for registered miners to attract external funding
vii. Increase global awareness about solid minerals in Ekiti State through the
internet
9. State-owned Enterprises as a vehicle for economic development:
Framework for Private Participation. Examples of agencies for promotion of
private participation (to serve as catalyst for investors, create revenue for the
State, generate employment) include:
• Ekiti Enterprise Development Agency (EEAD)
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9. • Fountain Holdings, Ltd.
10. Capacity Building Public Private Partnership (CBPPP) outfit
• To focus on the rapid industrialization of the state, several major and
minor approaches include:
• Optimization of the output of the ones operational currently for
maximum impact
• Resuscitation of all moribund industries scattered across the State
• Setting up of new large scale industries in strategic areas of the State
• Upgrading existing SMEs, for better efficiency and output
• Setting up new ones through empowerment schemes
• Reviving moribund ones through fund injection.
• Setting up centres for Entrepreneurial Development
• Establishment of vocational Training and Development centres
• Hosting of Local and International Business summit and Expos
• Regional Integration and economic development of South Western
Nigeria
Summit recognized the importance of the ongoing regional integration efforts
of the various governments of the South-Western region - including within the
framework of the new DAWN (Development Agenda for Western Nigeria)
document – and recommended the need to generate and increase:
• Awareness of participants to the increasing marginalization of the
Yoruba from the commanding heights of the economy, especially in the
regulatory agencies in the banks, finance and telecoms
• Cooperation among the Governors of the South West to tackle the
unemployment situation in the zone and come up with developmental
paradigm that will ensure immediate employment Regional
development activity centres around strategic hubs, leveraging
comparative advantages
• Integrated, multi-modal transportation infrastructure, connecting
regional and trans-regional development and activity centers
• Common urban architecture – housing, market and urban development
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10. • Dedicated Yoruba strategy and development think-tankContinued
growth of the economy of the Southwest and employment of Yoruba
without glass ceiling Reposition governance and public institutions for
effective service delivery
• Cultural awakening for positive values, ethos and norms of behaviour
• Restoration South West Nigeria’s competitiveness and its position of
leadership in Nigeria’s economic, social and political development
CONCLUSION OF SUMMIT:
At the end of the Summit, a Summary of the Proceedings was read out aloud,
with a pledge to submit this Communique at a later date.
Respectfully Submitted:
Professor M. E. Aluko Dr. Grace Modupe Adebo
Summit Facilitator Summit Co-Facilitator
OCTOBER 19, 2011
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