ABIODUN EXTOLS VIRTUE OF LATE IYALODE ALABA LAWSON
The Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun says his administration will sustain the legacies of the late educationist, entrepreneur and women activist, Iyalode Alaba Lawson.
Governor Abiodun made this known during the final burial service of the Iyalode of Egbaland and Yorubaland at the African Church, Cathedral of St. James, Abeokuta.
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Prince Abiodun described Iyalode Lawson as an illustrious daughter of the State, whom everyone is extremely proud of, adding that she was very eloquent, civilised and a promoter of Adire fabric.
Governor Abiodun also said the late Iyalode Alaba Lawson was an advocate of women's rights and emancipation, stating that she was principled and never hesitated to call a spade a spade.
"We as a government will do the needful to sustain the legacy of late Lawson. Our own dear Iyalode was eloquent, well-travelled, civilised, also remained cultural, holding on to her deep traditional value", he said.
Governor Abiodun noted that the late Iyalode Alaba Lawson was God-loving, and lived an impactful life, acknowledging the rock-solid support she gave him during his political journey.
Earlier in his message, the Primate of the African Church, His Eminence, Most Reverend Julius Abbe said the late educationist was a woman whose impact would be difficult to forget, adding that she was of great character, bold and courageous.
Reverend Julius Abbe noted that the late Iyalode Alaba Lawson pursued peace with all men while she was alive, stating that her death is a clarion call to the wealthy, the politicians and those in places of authority in the country to look after the poor.
The burial service had in attendance the wife of the Ogun State Governor, Mrs. Bamidele Abiodun, a former President of the country, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, his wife, Chief (Mrs.) Bola Obasanjo, a former Governor of the state, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, and his wife, Mrs. Olufunso Amosun, among others.
Obasan Oluwafunso,
Press Officer, Office of the Governor.
OGUN PARTNERS UNDP ON SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Indication has shown that the socio-economic status of Ogun State residents will be improved, as the state government is set to partner with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
This disclosure came to the fore in Abeokuta during a stakeholders' meeting with heads of agencies and parastatals and the UNDP team in Nigeria.
Speaking at the meeting, Commissioner for Finance, Mr. Dapo Okubadejo said the Prince Dapo Abiodun-led government has a forward-looking vision with a focus on infrastructure, highlighting the significance of data and knowledge acquisition for informed decision-making and policy formulation.
Okubadejo, who stressed the importance of partnerships, acknowledged the pivotal role of youths in propelling development and growth, emphasing the state's intent to leverage on UNDP's support in all spheres of human endeavours.
He affirmed the state's preparedness to collaborate with UNDP, citing shared interests such as creating an enabling environment for business, fostering Public-Private Partnerships for state development, and ensuring the prosperity of the people.
"We as a state are ready to partner with UNDP, as we are aware that this body is well positioned to support sub-nationals such as Ogun state and coincidentally, quite a lot of the areas discussed are the specific interest focused in our vision such as creating an enabling environment for business, the Public Private Partnership for the development of the State and the prosperity of the people of the State", Okubadejo stated.
In his remarks, Head of UNDP, Lagos Office, Mr. William Tsuma, who lauded Ogun State for the strong synergy with organisations, outlined UNDP's focus on creating an integrated team for priority areas, which includes, macro-economic planning, inclusive growth, financing frameworks, and support in climate and energy sustainability.
He emphasised the UNDP's commitment to supporting the Nigerian government, as well as sub–nationals, in tackling development challenges, adding that the organisation aims to achieve this by fortifying and establishing institutions that champion inclusive sustainable development and democratic governance.
He noted that the meeting was informed by the need for African nations to generate a smart-niche-based development plan, which is agile and responsive to risk, as well as contingencies for unplanned events.
“It is so exciting to note that Ogun State's agenda on employment generation, education, climate, and agriculture is closely aligned with UNDP's goals", Tsuma stated.
Bolaji Abiodun,
Press Officer, Ministry of Finance.
GROWTH OF SMEs REMAINS OUR TOP PRIORITY- OGSG
The growth of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) remains a top priority of the Ogun State Government, as it is the engine and life of the economy.
This was disclosed by the Commissioner for Industry, Trade and Investment, Mr. Adebola Sofela, when he hosted the Nigerian Association of Small Scale Industrialists (NASSI), Ogun State Chapter, in his office, in Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta.
Sofela said the present administration is not just interested in industrialisation of the State but in ensuring the improvement in the operations of Small and Medium Enterprises, which are known to be strategic in boosting the economy.
He promised the leadership of the association that the state government would conduct business clinics for SME owners in the three Senatorial Districts in the coming year to enhance their capacity, adding that the training would allow them to create platforms on how to better organise themselves into groups to access grants and funding.
The Commissioner, who was joined by the Special Adviser to the Governor on Industry, Trade and Investment, Mrs. Oluyemisi Dawodu and Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Dr. Olu. Ola. Aikulola, also advised the NASSI team to register on the government business portals, to enable them to access more opportunities to grow their trades.
"We will be engaging you to produce initiatives that affect SMEs. We are very much interested in your capacity building, considering your importance as our strategic partners", he said.
Meanwhile, the Commissioner played host to the team from the Technology Incubation Center (TIC), and a delegation from GB Africa Foods, promising that the Prince Dapo Abiodun-led government would continue to attract opportunities from relevant stakeholders to give a quantum leap to the operations and upgrade of businesses as a way of putting them on a global stage.
In his remarks, the Chairman, NASSI, Ogun State Chapter, Mr. Kayode Opesanmi, congratulated the state government for hosting a successful breakfast meeting with Chief Executive Officers of the Organised Private Sector, just as he pledged the support of his association to the government.
Femi Onasanya,
Press Officer, Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment.
EMBRACE ENTREPRENEURSHIP, OGUN PS URGES STUDENTS
Students in secondary schools and other academic institutions need to embrace entrepreneurship instead of concentrating all their hopes on getting white-collar jobs when they complete their education.
Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Olu. Ola. Aikulola stated this in Abeokuta, while delivering a lecture titled, "Building The Next Generation of Entrepreneurs" during the First Anniversary and Annual General Meeting (AGM) of Ogun State Students Entrepreneurs Activities Hubs (SEA Hubs) organised by the Bureau of Job Creation and Youth Empowerment in collaboration with the Ogun State Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (OGUNCCIMA), the Ijebu-Ode Business School and the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ).
Aikulola noted that students need to venture into entrepreneurship, by identifying and solving problems around them profitably, adding that doing so would enable them to be gainfully employed, as well as avoid the stress of seeking white-collar jobs, especially at this time when the employment market has become saturated.
He pointed out that problems existing in the country are opportunities which should be well harnessed, stating that students going into entrepreneurship must make integrity their watchword and develop skills which would help their entrepreneurial drive.
Aikulola, who expressed dissatisfaction with unskilled young Nigerians joining the "Japa" bandwagon by travelling abroad, said entrepreneurs with the right skills would attract more value anywhere in the world, adding that young entrepreneurs also need to identify competitive advantages which might include internationally competitive prices and effective branding among others to distinguish their products or services from those of competitors.
"If you are thoughtful, if you are proactive you can make money without doing "Yahoo" or advanced fee fraud. There is money in skills. Any entrepreneur who has the right skills will command the right value." the Permanent Secretary stated.
In his address, President, OGUNCCIMA, Engr. Mike Akingbade. who commended the members of the SEAHubs for starting their businesses at a young age and promised to allot stands to the young entrepreneurs to showcase their products during the forthcoming 2024 Gateway International Trade Fair which is billed for February 2024.
Also speaking, the President, Students Entrepreneurship Activities Alumni Network, Miss Grace Ojelade said the network comprises secondary school students involved in various entrepreneurial ventures across the state, emphasising that the members are encouraged to embrace entrepreneurship at an early stage and desist from over-reliance on getting white-collar jobs.
Wale Osunbiyi,
Press Officer, Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment
OGSG BOOSTS FISH FARMING WITH N50M
Towards achieving food security through the development of agriculture and fish sub-sector, the Ogun State Government has given out a sum of N50 million to Ijebu Development Initiative on Poverty Reduction (IDIPR), Eriwe in Odogbolu Local Government Area.
Presenting the cheque to the group in Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta under the Commercial Agriculture Credit Scheme (CACS) of the Ministry, Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Security, Hon. Bolu Owotomo said the fund would be repaid for 18 months inclusive of a 6-month moratorium at a single interest rate of 9 percent.
He stated that IDIPR is a private sector-driven organisation established in 1999, adding that the state government had disbursed a total sum of N110 million to the organisation since 2012 in different batches which the body repaid as and when due.
According to him, “The group is a reputable organisation to alleviate poverty and improve livelihoods of the poor and vulnerable people in the state”.
The Commissioner stressed that the State agricultural intervention was not only peculiar to the fish sub-sector but the entire value chain, noting that about 1,000 metric tons of maize were recently released to the poultry sector at a stiff discount to reduce the cost of production.
Owotomo highlighted some of the achievements of the present administration including, reforms of agricultural land allocation to investors to enable them to have access to agricultural land, distribution of planting materials to 150 women cassava farmers in collaboration with the National Agricultural Land Development Authority (NALDA), capacity building of 12,000 farmers on sustainable agriculture under the Value Chain Development Programme and constructive partnership with institutions and agricultural investors, among others.
In his remark, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Mr. Samuel Adeogun admonished the group to make judicious use of the loan, to make it a pride to other clusters.
Also speaking, the General Manager of IDIPR, Dr. Adeniyi Marcus commended the state government for the gesture, assuring that the group would live up to expectations by prudently making use of the loan.
Gbenga Moronfolu,
Press Officer, Ministry of Agriculture.
NSF WILL HAVE MULTIPLYING EFFECT ON OGUN ECONOMY – SPORTS COMMISSIONER
The Ogun State Commissioner for Sports Development, Hon. Wasiu Isiaka says the upcoming National Sports Festival to be hosted by the state in 2024 will have a multiplying effect on the economy and people's standard of living.
The Commissioner, who stated this while playing host to members of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), at the conference room of the Ministry, noted that apart from boosting economic activities of the State, the infrastructural upgrade becomes the permanent legacy that would serve the State long after the event.
He stated that the focus of the Ministry is not only to develop and raise talents only, but also to nurture the budding talents to stardom and monitor them progressively, saying, “Talents will not be discovered in schools alone but from all walks of human endeavours”.
Hon. Isiaka stated that the Ministry is ready to partner with the NLC, particularly the Youth Wing in areas of vocational and entrepreneurial training, saying the collaboration would help reduce the incidence of cultism and other social vices among the youth.
He submitted that the current administration has placed emphasis on the need to make Sports a Ministry on its own, as well as Youths, adding that it would help in focusing on the development of sports and youth development.
The Commissioner said, “Part of our strategy this time around is to have a system that would discover talents, nurture them to stardom and monitor their progress. We want to bring all our school games back, to help discover talents”.
On his part, the NLC Chairman, Comrade Hammed Benco revealed that the major reason for creating the Youth Wing of the Nigerian Labour Congress was to develop and actively engage the youth in various vocational and entrepreneurial skills, saying this would not only help reduce poverty, but also serve as an opportunity to develop life skills.
He stated that, “We have come to felicitate the Commissioner on his appointment and to seek collaboration with the Ministry on how to train, re-train and develop our youths on various skill acquisition programmes. We believe that with this training, the youth would move away from cultism and other social vices that can hamper their future”.
Ayobami Disu,
Press Officer, Ministry of Sports Development.
UNDP COMMENDS OGUN TECH INITIATIVES, PLEDGES SUPPORT
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has commended the technology initiatives of Ogun State Government, as the organisation indicated an interest in supporting the present administration's drive towards boosting the sector.
This was revealed during a familiarisation visit of the UNDP team, Lagos office led by Mr. Williams Tsuma to the Bureau of Information Technology (BIT), at Ogun Techhub, Kobape, Abeokuta.
Tsuma, in his words, lauded the state government for tapping into the trending technological innovations, expressing delight for the establishment of Ogun Techhub with State-of-the-art facilities and the serene environment it was located.
According to the UNDP team leader, ‘’We are here in Ogun state to see for ourselves the tremendous innovations on ground. We are amazed by the Ogun Techub which is equipped with necessary technology gadgets. The facilities here make it an incubation centre for entrepreneurs in tech and creative industry. I want to say that it is worthwhile partnering with the Ogun State Government to further boost this laudable initiative’’.
While revealing the aim of the visit, Tsuma said it was to ascertain what UNDP has heard about the state in terms of technology development and know the areas to support.
He said, ‘’Our organisation wishes to reconnect the missing link between young entrepreneurs and tech marketers such as Google, Meta, and Microsoft, among others, towards uplifting the world capital of technology’’.
Responding, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Information and Communication Technology (ICT), Mr. Dayo Abiodun, represented by the Director, Standard Regulations, Planning and Research, Mrs. Olatundun Adekunte expressed the preparedness of the state government to accommodate investors towards reducing unemployment and brain drain among the youth, as well as transforming the state to a tech solution centre both locally and internationally.
Also speaking, the Co-founder of GetFundedAfrica, Mr.Adebowale Omololu noted that Ogun state is one of the best states in Nigeria where investors have a good ambience to operate which makes an organisation grow.
Olayinka Ezema,
Press Officer, BIT.
Editor, OGIS,
Ministry of Information & Strategy, Ogun State.
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