4th November, 2023
By Adejoke Adeleye
Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, has called for cooperation between the State and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in such critical sectors as housing, energy transition, ICT, women empowerment, job creation and employment.
Speaking while receiving the UNDP Country Representative in Nigeria, Mohamed Yahya, in his Abuja office, Abiodun disclosed that those sectors were the major focus of his administration under his ISEYA Developmental Pillars.
He noted that the government had also made giant strides with attendant success in those sectors, vis-a-viz delivering more housing units in the first four years of the administration than all his predecessors combined, the success of the Women Empowerment programs which made giant strides in poverty alleviation via small scale lending, laying of over 5,000 KM of fiber optic to ensure hi-speed internet to all parts of the state, launch of the job portal which sought to connect employers and potential employees with over 150,000 registrations in the 1st week of launch, the construction of the Gateway Agro-Cargo Airport with the longest runway in Nigeria (4KM) in record time and the planned investment of over $400m for a planned special agric processing zone (SAPZ) in the adjourning land area to the airport to name a few.
“All these projects have changed the face of the State as well as the well-being of the people,” the governor said.
The governor further recalled that the administration, just on Monday, unveiled Mass transit buses running on Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), in line with its energy transition programme and climate change agenda with the introduction of EV2 and 3-wheelers to take place shortly.
Governor Abiodun told the delegation that his administration would seek the collaboration of the UNDP to continue to achieve its set goals, going forward.
“Specifically, the meeting agreed on several areas of support between the State and the UNDP, including but not limited to the joint development of baseline data and study for specific sectors in the state, including for the poor and vulnerable towards the aim of the State Government in bridging the gap to meet SDG goals, potential collaborations in arts and creative economy, expansion of the Ogun State for Women Project, Climate Change and exploration of carbon markets, provision of TVET training, empowerment through mini-grids power solutions and participation in UNDP’s Jubliee program through the state’s Ogun Teach Initiative and sustainable housing projects among others,” the governor said.
Earlier in his speech, the UNDP Representative listed the objectives of the organisation to include poverty alleviation, implementation of SDGs, deepening democratic governance, and measuring its impact.
Yahya said that UNDP is funding a Jubilee Programme, with the aim of placing 20,000 Nigerians in the public and private sectors while the organisation pays their salaries for one year.
According to him, 5,000 companies have signed up to participate in the project with 4,000 placements recorded so far.
The UNDP, he said, is also involved in other activities across the country, such as partnership with Mastercard Foundation to support startups and build tech ecosystems, energy transition with a focus on carbon sinks, tourism, and construction of innovation spaces in tertiary institutions to foster innovation.