The Osun state government played host to minister of mines and steel development, Arc. Olamilekan Adegbite, today following the activities embedded in the ongoing trade fair which is being superintends by the ministry of commerce, industry, cooperatives and empowerment.
The conference which has in attendance the state governor, Mr Gboyega Oyetola, ably represented by the deputy governor, Mr Benedict Alabi; Chief of Staff, Dr. Charles Akinola; deputy chief of staff, Mr Binuyo; Secretary to the state government, Prince Oluwole Oyebamiji and a host of other eminent personalities in Osogbo, the state capital.
The programme was adjudged a brilliant move by the participants towards moving Nigeria out of its reliance on crude oil.
The theme for the Trade Fair, tagged “Stimulating Value Addition through Digital Economy for Nigeria’s Sustainable Development”, is highly apt and is in tandem with the current trend of employing technology to catalyze economic transactions and development.
The fair is targeted towards making the South-West look inwards and making the best of the Agricultural products and Mineral resources in their respective localities to generate revenue and particularly foreign exchange. The fair is expected to create a nexus platform for explorers, processors and end users in the solid minerals sector of the South-West sub region for an improved economic base for foreign exchange earnings.
The Fair could not therefore have come at a better time than now.
Osun state commissioner for commerce, industry, cooperatives and empowerment, Dr. Olanipekun Olabode
Addressing journalists, the minister of Mines and steel development, Arc. Olamilekan Adegbite, said “we needed to add value to our minerals and to change our perception to knowledge based people.
In his word:
“If we add value to gold, it will create revenue for government, create employment to our people.
The minister said people need to come together, to form groups for them to access federal government facilities with just 5% interest which can be repaid for a period of fifteen years.
“The same mistake we made in exporting crude oil, we shouldn’t make same in minerals. We have goldsmiths which can be trained to be more professional in mining this God given minerals,” he said.
Speaking on behalf of the state governor, the deputy governor, Mr Benedict Alabi said that Osun is always open for opportunities to exploit its resources and collaborate with its partners to unleash investment potential for collective good.
Alabi said;
“We cannot express enough gratitude to the President for granting us the privilege to be part of the mineral exploration programme. We are also indebted to the Minister of Power and Steel for preparing the administrative and operational instruments to make this initiative a success.”
“In keying to this current trend in Osun, our Government has approved the establishment of the e-commerce and Digital Economy Unit in the Ministry of Commerce, Industry, Cooperatives and Empowerment.”
“This Fair, which is expected to have positive multiplier effect on the economy of the States in the South-West, is aimed at maximally harnessing the potential of each Local Government Councils in the South-West and showcase such globally,” he concluded.
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