UNIDO pledges to support Nigeria achieve sustainable industrialisation
Jean Bakole, United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) representative to ECOWAS and regional director, Nigeria Regional Office Hub, has said that the organisation would partner and support Nigeria in the development of Special Economic Zones (SEZs) and achievement of sustainable industrialisation.
Bakole stated this during a management retreat organised with UNIDO’s support for the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment and its agencies, in Makurdi, Benue State, weekend.
“UNIDO is strongly committed to support the remarkable efforts of the government to increase the national productivity and achieve sustainable industrialisation through value addition and sustainable diversification of productive activities for economic growth and poverty reduction.”
“We intend to intensify our activities in Nigeria as well as expand our scope into other sectors such as the mining and creative industries, information technology initiatives for youth, digital technology, and others to concretely support the implementation of the Nigeria Industrial Revolution Plan in line with the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan. Also, we will like to support and promote the activities of the Nigerian government in the Special Economic Zones establishment and management,” Bankole said.
He said UNIDO was grateful to the Government of Nigeria for its significant financial support to the Country Programme implementation in the country.
“Our mandate towards an Inclusive and Sustainable Industrial Development (ISID), Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 9 of the Agenda 2030: Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and foster innovation and the third Industrial Development Decade for Africa (IDDA-III) are well reflected in the above two strategic documents of the Government of Nigeria,” he stated.
“We have taken note of the vision of the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, which aims to create an enabling environment for industrialisation, facilitate the development of both hard and soft infrastructure, promote proactively local and foreign direct investments and strengthen ties with strategic partners and international organisations to foster regional and international trade.”
In his remarks, Okechukwu Enelamah, minister of industry, trade and investment, said there was an urgent need for the government to pull Nigeria’s economy out of recession and place it on the path of inclusive and sustainable industrial development .
“This retreat organised with UNIDO’s support has provided us the opportunity to discuss how to successfully implement the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP), working together with all stakeholders and partners – including UNIDO – in the implementation of the Nigeria Economic Recovery and Growth Plan,” Enelamah said.
Odinaka Anudu