Olaniyi Ajibola

Speaking from the position of satisfactory knowledge about good leadership and selfless service, the first American President, George Washington once said,” Ninety percent of leadership is the ability to communicate something people want”.

This submission unequivocally describes the nature and vision of the Governor of Ogun State, Prince Dapo Abiodun, who has consistently and convincingly taken up the responsibility of the Chief Marketer of the state, communicating with the international community about Ogun products of great value and prosperity.

Changing the business environment through decisive and deliberate policies that made the state the Best In Ease of Doing Business within a secured security architecture and necessary infrastructure, Governor Dapo Abiodun indeed has a lot in stock to market to the world.

The Governor’s recent visit to Algiers to participate in the high-level panel session titled “Investment Showcase: Unveiling Opportunities from Select African & Caribbean Sub-Sovereigns” at the just concluded IATF25 in the capital of the North African country is a further testimony of a leader superintending a leading subnational government adjudged as the country’s number one investment destination.

Delivering his speech with profound clarity and precision at the panel, the Ogun Chief Marketer emphasized the pivotal role of subnational governments in driving the success of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

Highlighting factors militating against favourable balanced of trade across the continent of Africa, Governor Abiodun argued that despite Africa’s enormous potentials, intra-continental trade still accounts for only about 15 percent of total trade, largely due to weak infrastructure, cumbersome regulations, and fragmented value chains.

The Governor, however added that his administration, right from it’s inception in 2019 has revolutionalized the Ogun State business ecosystem to make it more efficient and functional, by proactively breaking these barriers through bold initiatives designed to attract investment and deepen trade.

Abiodun, then began to articulate arrays of his legacy projects that continued to drive the state’s economy as a leading industrial hub in Nigeria, which includes: The Multi-modal transport system that intrinsically connects the state through road, air and rail.

He mentioned the Gateway International Cargo Airport, located along Iperu-Ilisan road, which is a contiguous zone to Lagos, the commercial capital of Nigeria as well as the dry ports in Ijebu-Ode and Kajola.

The Governor was particularly excited to announce his enviable feat in road construction despite inheriting humongous deficit in road infrastructure at the beginning of his administration and went ahead to construct over 1,200 kilometres of roads and upgraded many others.

Of paramount importance for the sustainability and advancement of the real sector in the state is the expanded gas reticulation networks that affords manufacturing firms the opportunity to access energy easily without blemish.

Governor Abiodun also informed the panel of creating Economic Development Clusters and Free Trade Zones across the state. According to him, the Remo Economic Development Cluster was strategically established to be anchored by the newly licensed Gateway International Airport.

In the same vein, the Ijebu Economic Development Cluster enjoys the proximity to the Dangote Refinery and Agro-Allied Industries, while the Agbara Industrial Cluster; the Ogun-Guangdong Free Trade Zone; and several other hubs were consciously designed to support co-location, shared utilities, and value-chain optimisation.

Also, unlike in the past when the process of acquiring lands was highly problematic cumbersome for investors, the Governor announced his policy of simplified processes for investors through the One-Stop Investment Center (OgunInvest) and a GIS-enabled Land Bank covering 300,000 hectares of pre-verified land, with enabling faster permits, titles, and approvals.

He went ahead to state that policy certainty, which encompasses frameworks under the 2019 PPP Law, as well as risk-sharing partnerships with AfDB and IFAD, and structured government-industry dialogue further made Ogun business environment very friendly for every investor.

He stated that Ogun State has a distinct comparative cost advantage of location, strategically positioned for seamless access to Lagos ports, ECOWAS markets, and the Benin Republic border for regional distribution.

Governor Abiodun concluded by saying that with these deliberate and intentional interventions, Ogun State is positioning itself as Nigeria’s foremost AfCFTA hub—where scale, speed, and certainty converge to unlock shared prosperity for Africa.

As the Chief Marketer continues to be on the move to communicate with the global community and market Ogun Products, the people of the state are very proud of their thought leader.

*Ajibola is the Senior Special Assistant to Governor Dapo Abiodun on Strategic Communications

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