Indeed, if His Excellency, Alhaji Ahmed Abdulfatah, the Executive Governor of Kwara State, were to be an athlete, he would be in a blistering form in the one hundred metres dash, just as the four by four hundred metres relay race would comfortably occupy pole position in his competitive athletic menu list. Interestingly, both require enormous s;peed and endurance, but more than anything else, focus. No doubt, in the last one year, this gentleman has displayed these traits in surplus; the reason he has so far surpassed expectations before and after his victory in the April 26, 2011 gubernatorial election in the state on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Recall that when politicians and technocrats from Kwara State and beyond converged in Lagos for a retreat to draw a roadmap on the Kwara Project after the elections, many dismissed it as a jamboree; describing it as one of those time-wasting talk shops that would not impact positively on the people. In fact, as was with the governor’s “Legacy Continues” slogan premised on the benefits of one administration furrowing into another in terms of policy formulation and implementation, as well as programme actualization, many saw it as another political mantra to cajole the electorate. The doubts arose particularly as most new governments in Nigeria were in the habit of steering away from the programmes of the outgoing government and often rubbished their actions and programmes by any way possible.
However, as opposed to this common practice, the Governor Ahmed’s administration chanted the continuity mantra and stuck to it being in the know of its benefits to the people. Little wonder, two years down the foray, for the discerning, the administration has substantially acquitted itself by upping the ante of development in many sectors of the Kwara economy with the monumental developmental benchmark set by the immediate past administration of Dr Bukola Saraki as a guide. Starting out with the Lagos Summit which gave birth to the shared prosperity of the administration as a spring board for the formulation, implementation and actualization of the administration’s programmes and policies, all eyes were fastened on the transformation agenda of the government.
With a policy thrust that leverages resources and takes advantage of the strength of the state for economic growth, human capital development and youth empowerment, strategic infrastructure and effective governance, all of which fuse with the Shared Prosperity Programme of the administration, happy days, indeed, have come.
While deepening and strengthening commercial agriculture through private sector initiative to drive the economy of the state and in turn, create jobs and ensure food security, the government has completed the International Diagnostic Centre, flag-off of the inaugural flight by student-pilots of the International Aviation college, completed the Micheal Imoudu/ Offa garage road among other road projects started by the immediate past governement, as part of the continuity agenda. The administration’s high value on the 500 metres concept, especially as it affects its health and water supply policies spurred it on to consolidate on the achievements of the previous administration in the area of primary healthcare. new ambulances supplied to specialist and General Hospitals, hospital equipment, drugs to 43 primary health centers.
In its first phase, the administration embarked on a robust rehabilitation of the five General Hospitals across the three senatorial districts of the state at the cost of more than N1.6 billion with more General Hospitals to follow in the second phase. The governor explained that the logic behind the concept is that no Kwaran should go beyond 500 metres to access quality healthcare. Already, plans are in top gear for the start of the Community-based Healthcare Insurance Scheme, which has already undergone pilot scheme.
With matchless vigour, Dr. Ahmed pursued his dreams of human capital development and youth empowerment. Like squeezing water out of stone, quite a number of investors are now keen on coming to the state. The government signed a N70 billion large scale rice production agreement with Valsolar, a Spanish Consortium. The agreement has since been commended by stakeholders in the agriculture sector, just as the federal government through the Minister of Agriculture, Akinwumi Adesina signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the state government on the production and cultivation of cassava on commercial scale in the state.
Today, Kwara State produces about 40 tonnes per hectare of cassava which is far above national average. The beauty of the Valsolar/Kwara State government partnership lies in the fact that the Spanish consortium got to know about Kwara State’s potentials in agriculture through the Spanish Embassy in Nigeria.
Another dividend of the administration’s policy on agriculture was the interest of Mosilo Group in building an Agro-Processing complex in Share in Ifelodun council area of the state. The 600 tonnes complex with over $150 million capital outlay for its first phase will change the status of Nigeria to the largest producer of cassava in the world. Unyielding in his determined efforts to leave a positive and enduring footprint in the sound of time, governor Ahmed has also succeeded in convincing Alhaji Aliko Dangote consider Kwara State in the latter’s commitment to invest in Agriculture, a project expected to snowball in to massive youth employment in the state.
Instructively, the efforts of Governor Ahmed has not gone unnoticed as he was awarded the Outstanding Agriculture Icon of the Year 2011, for his contributions to the country’s agricultural development by the African Leadership Magazine in Washington DC, United States of America in April last year.
To boost water supply, the administration provided water booster station at Western Reservoir in Ilorin and Anberi to boost water supply to Ajasse-Ipo and environs. It also carried out comprehensive rehabilitation of 15 water works and sunk 300 boreholes across the State. The
reticulation of water pipes in Ilorin metropolis constrained by unexpected exigencies is expected to resume in earnest, while boreholes have been dug for many communities to ensure availability and access to pipe borne water. In the last count, no fewer than 14 water works were rehabilitated while 38 others were committed to the National Grid.
On the area of manpower, which the government sees as critical to the actualization of its robust policies, it has expedited action on the take-off of the School of Nursing, Oke-Ode to complement the College of Nursing, Ilorin, in the training of qualified nurses and midwives.
It is worthy of note that in the last nine years or so, Kwara State has been reputed for road construction. Interestingly, the tempo has been nourished under the present administration. The Governor Ahmed’s administration has done over 800 kilometres of roads in the three senatorial districts to open up the state further for agricultural development and economic growth. Over 300 of these are feeder and access roads purposed to create the desired value chain. For those who know Ilorin metropolis very well, the Kulende-Oyun bridge axis of Old-Jebba road in Ilorin, a federal road, was a nightmare for motorists due to monumental traffic snare. Today, the story is different. The state government carried out expansion work on a long stretch of the road at a cost of N200million and traffic congestion on the road has since disappeared.
Again, the government in phases, has rehabilated more than 400 classrooms in 58 schools while about N24 million was spent on the payment of National Examination Council and National Board for Technical Education fees for 3,126 students. At the tertiary education level, fees of Kwara indigenes at the Kwara State University Malete was reduced from N180,000.00 to N95,000.00 to the relief off parents and guardians while it also paid Bursary Award to students of Kwara State origin.
The subventions of State owned tertiary institutions were increased by 50% to boost the financial strength of the institutions. Still poised to reflect the new education policy based on capacity building with a technical education bias, Technical Schools in Erin-Ile, Ilorin and Patigi are being rehabilitated and equipped to produce well trained manpower, while an International Vocational Centre at Ajasse-Ipo, in Irepodun local government of the state is speedily under construction under strict supervision of City and Guilds of London to ensure compliance to international standard.
On the economic front, Kwara State remains a beautiful bride for investors and banking institutions who want to partake in the actualization of the state’s potentials. Apart from investors like Mosilo and Visolar with interest in the agric sector, the management of Keystone and Diamond Banks, among others, were early callers to the state to see areas of partnership and business opportunity. The Managing Director of Keystone Bank, Oti Ikomi, and his Diamond Bank counterpart, Dr. Alex Oti, during separate courtesy calls on Governor Ahmed, expressed willingness to partner the state government in its shared prosperity programme. What can be of more testimony to Abdulfatah’s investment drive than attracting shop rite to Ilorin with its multiplier’s effect?
While plans are in top gear to attract more investors to the state, the state government incorporated Harmony Holdings Company Limited, which has 21 subsidiaries with a projected One billion naira share capital base as part of the drive to enhance economic activities in the state. The new Holding Company would ensure the subsidiaries are properly run to upscale the internally generated revenue of the state. The state government has also flagged off a N500m empowerment scheme for cooperative societies to propel Small and Medium Scale (SME) enterprises to play crucial part in the economy of the state.
With uncompromising commitment to pilot Kwara State to the dreamland, the stage is unprecedentedly set to auto run the next phase of massive infrastructure development and economic growth of the state. This is expected to include massive rehabilitation of schools across the state, building of the second phase of general hospitals, generation of the much desired electric power and automated powering of all street lights in the state, housing program, especially for the middle-class, more youth empowerment programs including employment generation, among others.
In the manner of an athlete with professional finishing on the track, the governor learnt the ropes thoroughly having received the relay baton from Senator Saraki, who, himself, understood the challenges ahead and knew who had the requisite experience, exposure and interest of the people at heart. Humility, resourcefulness, determination, commitment, and, in deed, the fear of God are the ingredients that spice up Dr Abdulfatah Ahmed to steer the ship of our dear state of harmony.
Oba is the Chief Press Secretary to Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed.
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