ENUGU | 

Enugu State Governor, Barr. Peter Ndubuisi Mbah, said that his government has made huge investments in security architecture of the state to secure businesses, lives and others in the state. 

Speaking at the SOUTHEAST BUSINESS AND INVESTMENT SUMMIT 2.0 held at International Conference Centre, Independence Layout, Enugu yesterday, while representing Governor Mbah, the Deputy Governor, Barr. Ifeanyi Ossai, said it is clear we are facing insecurity challenges, but as government, we are doing everything we can to bring the situation under control. 

"In Enugu, we have made huge investments in security to secure businesses, lives and others. The number of incidences is beginning to drop in Enugu drastically and rapidly. 

"We may not be there yet, but we are working hard to get there. We have invested heavily in technology and intelligence gathering. Some of the successes and breakthroughs, we have made are not those we would discuss publicly, but be assured that while you are asleep, we are working hard to ensure that you are protected," he said.

Ossai, who thanked the organizers of event, urged them to embrace disruptive innovations by adopting different approach, stressing that we have been doing the same things and expecting different result.

He said: "It is time for us to assume that the design life of the approach we had adopted has reached its end and it is time to reinvent the approach.

"I am particularly excited by the strategic approach deployed by Prof. Ken Ike. I also commend the organizers of this event, because today, new market opportunities have been opened up for Ndi Igbo business in Sierra Leone and Botswana and if this event didn’t hold, that opportunity might not have knocked on the door.

"We must be able to produce for us to trade. We must be able to be inventive for us to compete. And we cannot compete or produce in our current state. It is clear we are facing insecurity challenges, but as government, we are doing everything we can to bring the situation under control."

"A lot had also been said about the trajectory for us to grow. It is important to note that we are that zone that has the first indigenous university in this country. We are also the home to Nigeria’s finest universities of science and technology – FUTO, ESUT, etc. And in an event of this nature, I expect the leaders of these institutions or their representatives to be here. Silicon Valley is what it is because of Stanford. 

"Our schools are the homes of research and innovations and new ideas. We cannot successfully achieve our aim and purpose if we have no relationship with them with respect to development.

In the southeast, we don’t have efficient movement of goods and services. Producers in Enugu find it difficult to move their goods to Aba. If we must expand our opportunities, we must first of all, work to create a common market in the southeast. One that makes investments attractive to foreign investors and private capital. An investor may not possibly do rail from Enugu to Nsukka or Awka, due to access to capital. This is why we need our universities, best brains and government. We must create  businesses that attract capital from all around the world. An investor looking to invest in our region would be happy to face less bureaucratic bottlenecks as a result of our common market. We can standardize that. We can make the ease of doing business simpler and more predictable. That way, we are guaranteeing businesses that we are working together and they begin to look at us as a common market where it is safe to invest and get good returns.

"We cannot succeed the way we currently are. It is convenient to blame government, but we must do our own homework before we present our findings to the governors for conversation. Talk shops as this will not solve the problem.
"Southeast Business and Investment Summit, Ohaneze and other relevant groups have to come up with a lobby team that will negotiate with the federal government to provide and approve the things we need to make businesses attractive to investors in the South East. It has to happen through lobbying, negotiation and diplomatic approaches.  

I thank you for coming to Enugu and finding time to have this conversation and I pledge the support of our government to whatever approach Ohaneze and SEBIS decide to take to make South East the preferred place for investment, trade and tourism."