By Modupe Gbadeyanka
A deal to attract $50 million worth of investment into Edo State has been signed by Governor Godwin Obaseki and a Singaporean firm, Tolaram Group.
Special Adviser to the Governor on Media and Communication Strategy, Mr Crusoe Osagie, said in a statement in Benin, the state capital, that the deal will create about 50,000 jobs in the state.
According to the Governor’s aide, the deal covers investments in agriculture, specifically, oil palm and cassava to feed the processing plants of the group’s company.
He said Mr Obaseki sealed the deal in Singapore, where he is having business trip accompanied by his wife, Mrs Betsy Obaseki; the Commissioner for Wealth Creation, Cooperatives and Employment, Mr Emmanuel Usoh; as well as the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Kadiri Bashiru.
“The visit to Singapore is consolidating on an earlier visit to Indonesia, where the Governor sealed deals with the Indonesian Oil Palm Research Institute in Medan.
“This is to leverage on the institute’s research capacity in reinvigorating Edo State Oil Palm and Allied Industries,” Mr Osagie said.
He added that other areas of the ongoing talks with Singaporean enterprises include infrastructure, digital services, real estate- the Edo New City Development project-, among others.
Adedapo Adesanya