Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State on Monday reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to adopting modern technologies to transform agriculture and expand the state’s economy.
The governor, represented by his deputy, Barr. Abdulraheem Bayo Lawal, made the remark while receiving a delegation of Chinese investors from the China Overseas Engineering Group Co. Limited at the Governor’s Office, Secretariat, Ibadan.
Makinde said Oyo State holds a comparative advantage in agriculture and has invested in infrastructure and security to attract investment in the sector. He urged the investors to partner with the state government to enhance food security, increase productivity, and position the state as a hub for agro-industrial processing, with the potential to create thousands of jobs and boost revenue.
“Oyo State has the land, infrastructure, and a hospitable population. Your expertise in agric-technology will complement our vision to move from subsistence to commercial agriculture,” Lawal told the delegation.
He highlighted the state’s diverse vegetation, which supports multiple crop and livestock systems, and pointed to ongoing projects such as the Fasola and Eruwa Agribusiness Hubs, as well as the Ijaye Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zone recently inaugurated by the President of the African Development Bank.
Director-General of the Oyo State Agribusiness Development Agency (OYSADA), Dr. Debo Akande, said the Chinese investors’ mission aligns with the state’s strategy of leveraging agribusiness to drive rural transformation and industrial development.
Earlier, the leader of the Chinese team, Ms. Dong Gwping, pledged that the partnership would introduce advanced Chinese technology to strengthen Oyo’s agricultural value chain and stimulate socio-economic growth.
Other dignitaries at the meeting included the Commissioner for Trade, Industry, Investment and Cooperatives, Hon. Adeniyi Adebisi; Director-General of the Oyo State Investment Public-Private Partnership Agency (OYSIPA), Mr. Tilewa Folami; officials of the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission, and senior government officials.
