IT began as an innocent question but soon degenerated into a heated argument. And what is this question, one might? Between Lagos and Ogun, which has more industries? The Lagos fans would not imagine any state in the country taking the lead in terms of commerce and industrialisation. They were ready to put their last kobo on the line.
They readily cited the ports and some industries around the Ogba and Ikeja axis. But after a thorough analysis, it was generally agreed that Ogun State is now the industrial hub of the nation. The state governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun attested to this recently during the administration’s second anniversary.
Senator Amosun would tell anyone who cares to listen that Ogun has the largest number of industries and that the state is now a preferred choice destination for investment. And this boast is not hot air. An accountant of repute with many years of experience, Gov. Amosun has been able to muscle industries in the state which hitherto paid taxes and levies to the Lagos State to put their money where their mouth is. And he has succeeded in this regard such that from a base of an Internal Generated Revenue, IGR, of N730m as at May 2011 every month, it rose to N3.8b in May 2013 and is still counting.
Thus, according to the Governor,”today, Ogun State is not only open for business, it is business”.
For him, the economic gains are there for all to see. With 123 companies showing readiness to locate their manufacturing outfits in the state and 32 of this figure already on ground at different levels of operation, while 27 have fully commenced operations, Ogun no doubt is gradually becoming the hottest ‘industrial hub’ in town. Perhaps, it is against this backdrop that the State government says its Bureau of Lands and Survey is being restructured to make it more efficient with transparent and accountable operations.
Accountable operations
Amosun said the state government is about completing the implementation of the Geographic Information System, GIS, with full automation land administration. This, he said, would pave way for the mapping of the entire State, facilitating easier access to land for local and foreign investors.
In addition to this, the state government is equally pursuing with vigour infrastructural development such that it can presently be described as a huge construction site.
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