Buhari commends Kaduna’s investment drive

President Muhammadu Buhari has commended the Kaduna State government for adopting the Ease of Doing Business Committee model created by the federal government at the beginning of this administration in a bid to promote investment for economic growth.

This was contained in a goodwill letter by the president which was conveyed to the government of Kaduna State during the second Kaduna Economic and Investment Summit holding in Kaduna from Wednesday 5th-Thursday 6th April 2017.

According to President Buhari, the federal government initiated the ease of doing business committee because it recognises the need to encourage the private sector to provide the needed investment that will drive economic growth.

He said: “I am aware that Kaduna State has replicated the ease of doing business committee. And I commend this decision. This action reflects that Kaduna state government understands the huge responsibilities sub-national actors have in our quest for national rebirth.

“It is my hope that KADINVEST 2.0 aptly themed ‘Making Kaduna Business Destination of Choice’, will result in reliable partnership and beneficial collaboration that can promote economic prosperity for the people of Kaduna state and Nigeria at large”

During the summit, Governor Nasir El-Rufai unveiled the Kaduna State Ease of Doing Business Charter which outlines the government’s commitment and measures aimed at simplifying business processes and operations in the state. The aim is to demonstrate the state’s business-friendly environment that is also supported by a favourable legal framework.

Also launched were the State Sector Implementation Plans, the Infrastructure Master Plan 2017-2050, the Eyes and Ears platform which allows for citizens’ participation in projects monitoring across the state.

Speaking at the opening of the second edition of Kaduna Economic and Investment Summit KADINVEST 2.0, Mr. El-Rufai said the Infrastructure Master Plan details the physical and social infrastructure needs of the state from 2017-2050.

The plan, which identifies about 300 projects, links the state’s development plans with actual needs of the people. According to Mr. El-Rufai, the major objective of the master plan is to create a conducive environment for public/private participation in infrastructure project development.

The governor explained that the state government has taken a number of measures to strengthen the business environment of the state since the last edition of the summit. The measures include passing a number of laws, producing the State Development Plan (SDP) 2016-2020 and empowering the agencies to drive it, leveraging on the participation of the private sectors in key sectors of the economy, among others.

Also speaking at the event, the Emir of Kano, Lamido Sanusi, said Nigeria’s growth will only come from investment. While delivering a keynote address at the summit, the emir decried the trend in Nigeria and other African countries where the growth model is hinged on increased spending and borrowing to finance spending.

The emir called on state governors of the north to emulate Kaduna by encouraging investment saying there is the need for citizens to invest in the country as Dangote is doing to make the economy grow.

Since the last edition of the summit in April 2016, investment of more than $350 million have come into Kaduna state with thousands of jobs created.

The Kaduna Economic and Investment Summit (KADINvest) is an annual two-day event that showcases Kaduna’s potentials and the policies government is implementing to attract and retain the investors that can create the jobs and provide the revenues needed for development. The inaugural edition of KADInvest was held in 2016. The theme of the 2017 edition is ‘Making Kaduna a Business Destination of Choice’.