Abia State Authorities and an agro-processing agency are set to signal a $200 million Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, aimed toward reviving oil palm plantation growth and revolutionising oil palm production and processing.
Abia State Governor, Dr Alex Otti, made this identified when he met with a delegation from Presco PLC in his workplace.
Chairman of Presco PLC, Olakanmi Rasheed Sarumi, throughout a presentation on the assembly, disclosed the corporate was ready to speculate $200 million in palm oil production and processing in Abia State, including that the agency intends to amass 14, 000 hectares of land for the challenge.
Sarumi defined that establishing a significant oil palm processing hub in Abia to serve the Southeast area would appeal to downstream industries, given the huge industrial makes use of of uncooked palm oil.
Based on him, the initiative is predicted to create over 5,000 direct and oblique jobs, significantly for native youths, throughout plantation operations, milling, logistics, and associated assist companies and scale back rural-urban migration, and stimulate growth within the host communities.
The Chairman stated that the corporate has recognized three potential areas, together with Ozuitem in Bende native authorities space, Abam in Arochukwu native authorities space and Ulonna in Umuahia North native authorities space, for growth of the palm plantation challenge.
He described the proposed funding as a contemporary continuation of the agricultural revolution initiated by former Japanese Area Premier, Dr Michael Okpara, whose farm settlement programmes boosted oil palm production in Nigeria.
He famous the challenge aligns with the imaginative and prescient of the Abia State Authorities to rework the state into one in all Nigeria’s prime three industrial plantation clusters by 2032.
When absolutely operational, Sarumi revealed the funding would contribute billions in naira yearly to the State’s Gross Home Product (GDP) by means of agricultural output, tax revenues, and expanded {economic} actions throughout small, medium-scale enterprises and native worth chains.
“Our job to His Excellency and the state is to have this mutually helpful relationship and facilitate the land acquisition for Presco Plc, in addition to safety assist to understand this growth.
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“Our funding right here will add multi-billion naira yearly to Abia State’s GDP by means of agricultural output, tax revenues and multiplier results throughout SMEs and native worth chains,” he stated.
Welcoming the delegation, Governor Otti stated the 2 events would quickly signal an MoU to formalise the partnership earlier than continuing to the flag-off of the challenge.
“In precept, we’re in Contract with you. I’m pleased that you simply went again to historical past, to the times of Dr. Michael Okpara, who really arrange these farm settlements, together with the Ulonna farm settlement.
“I feel it’s a great way to begin. I consider that 14,000 hectares (requested by Presco) may be for beginning, as a result of, such as you rightly noticed, now we have the topography and we’re blessed with the standard of land that will offer you one of many highest yields,” the governor stated.
He assured his authorities was decided to revive Abia State to the golden period of the late Michael Okpara, when oil palm production was the {economic} mainstay of the then Japanese Area.
Otti additionally assured the delegation that the federal government would facilitate land acquisition and supply the required safety assist.
Earlier, the Group Managing Director, Afrinvest, Dr. Ike Chioke, whereas commending the governor for insisting on an intensive analysis course of earlier than any partnership is finalised, revealed the delegation’s go to adopted discussions between the Abia State authorities and Presco Plc within the first quarter of 2025 by means of the State’s Public-Non-public Partnership framework.
The Commissioner for SME and Business, Mazi Mike Akpara, was current through the assembly.