The Chairman of Alaghodaro Summit Ltd/LTE, Mr. Asue Ighodalo, has said the government, through the yearly Alaghodaro Summit, is attracting investments and growing the state’s economy, leveraging public-private partnerships.
Ighodalo said this during a roundtable on Public-Private Partnership (PPP) with the theme, “Achieving Competitiveness: A Sub-National Framework for Infrastructure Delivery Through PPP,” held at the Government House in Benin City.
Guests at the event include Special Adviser to the Governor on Media Projects, Crusoe Osagie; Commissioner for Culture, Tourism and Diaspora Affairs, Prince Bamidele Obaitan; Commissioner for Finance, Budget and Economic Planning, Joseph Eboigbe and the Commissioner for Energy and Mining, Ethan Uzamere, among others.
The Alaghodaro chair said the government in the past six years has continued to pursue reforms and programmes to transform the state into an investment haven, ensuring a safe and conducive environment for businesses to thrive.
Ighodalo, represented by the Director of Alaghodaro Committee and Secretary to Edo State Government, Osarodion Ogie Esq., noted, “Much of the gains achieved have been in partnership with the private sector. The Governor Godwin Obaseki-led administration has continued to leverage PPP in transforming the state to an investment destination.
“The function of this roundtable discussion stems from the offshoot of the 2022 Alaghodaro Investment Summit where major investors and captains of industries across the country were present and identified infrastructural development as a key pillar in driving sub-national competitiveness through PPP.
“As a State, we are focused on building a pipeline of sociable and advantageous PPP projects for the public good. No better time than now to define in clear terms the adoption of a clear, strong legal and institutional framework that addresses our challenges and experience over the years.”
He added, “Our goal is to leverage fundamental principles of legislative action towards addressing the obstacles and challenges we have witnessed over the last few years of implementing PPP in the state.
“The task before us is to refocus on how to effectively translate the PPP legal framework as a catalyst for the delivery of sustainable, innovative and credible PPP projects in Edo State.”
On his part, the Director General of Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), Mr. Micheal Ohiani stated, “The federal government is committed to the development of infrastructure through PPP as it seeks to encourage more private sector participation in national infrastructure development.”
