Governor Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa of Ondo State on Tuesday, credited President Bola Tinubu’s economic reforms with restoring the financial capacity of state governments, warning that a return to fuel subsidy could plunge states into an era of borrowing to meet salary obligations.
Governor Aiyedatiwa said the increased revenue accruing to states following subsidy removal had strengthened their ability to discharge financial obligations, settle inherited liabilities and undertake capital projects without resorting to loans.
This is just as the governor has charged beneficiaries of Federal Government interventions in the manufacturing and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) sectors to mobilise grassroots support for the re-election of President Tinubu and Vice-President Kashim Shettima.
Governor Aiyedatiwa gave the charge at a stakeholders’ meeting with business operators in Ondo State, organised by the Manufacturing and MSME Directorate of the Presidential Campaign Council at the Dr Olusegun Mimiko Event Centre, The Dome, in Akure.
He said the engagement was designed to showcase the Tinubu administration’s achievements, interventions and second-term plans.
The governor highlighted the revival of the Ile-Oluji Cocoa Factory, support for the cocoa value chain and agribusiness, tax exemptions for businesses with annual turnovers of up to N250 million and collateral-free credit under the National Credit Guarantee Scheme.
Acknowledging that some entrepreneurs were yet to benefit from the interventions, he urged beneficiaries to take the message to their communities, towns, villages, units and wards.
“What is left that we all have to do is to take this news out there to the communities, to towns, to villages, to the units, to the wards where you are from, why they should vote for the re-election of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and his Vice, Senator Kashim Shettima,” he said.
Governor Aiyedatiwa attributed Ondo State’s improved capacity to execute infrastructure projects, pay salaries and create jobs to Federal Government support, saying the reforms had enhanced the state’s access to funds without depending solely on borrowing.
In his address, the Minister of State for Industry, Senator John Owan Enoh, disclosed that the Federal Government had disbursed at least N3.6 trillion in credits and grants to businesses through development finance institutions within three years of the Tinubu administration.
He said the figure is separate from expenditures by ministries and government agencies, describing MSMEs as the actual economy and noting that more than 40 million small businesses could drive national development if adequately supported.
Enoh listed free Corporate Affairs Commission registration for more than 50,000 MSMEs, public procurement training, prompt payment for government contracts, skills development through the Industrial Training Fund and the Nigerian First policy among the interventions.
He also cited the Nigerian Industrial Policy unveiled on February 17, 2026, efforts to promote value addition in cocoa and shea butter and plans to revitalise the cotton, textile and garment sector.
He said about 220 Nigerian products had been certified to compete under the African Continental Free Trade Area, stressing that local patronage must not come at the expense of quality.
The minister pledged continued collaboration with the governor and party stakeholders to advance President Tinubu’s agenda and re-election bid.
Also speaking, the Special Adviser to the President on Industry, Trade and Investment, Mr John Ugochukwu Uwajumogu, said the Tinubu administration’s economic reforms and targeted interventions were creating jobs, increasing productivity and expanding Nigerian businesses’ access to national and international markets.
He said the reforms had improved the business environment and strengthened investor confidence, while targeted interventions were providing businesses with the tools needed for growth.
Uwajumogu identified the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway as an opportunity to expand market access for Ondo cocoa farmers and other businesses.
He also cited the state’s coastline, planned deep seaport and Olokola Free Trade Zone as prospects for importing raw materials, manufacturing and exporting finished products.
He disclosed that the Niger Delta Development Commission and SMEDAN had made more than N2 trillion available to businesses, urging operators to channel the funds into expansion and value addition rather than exporting raw materials and jobs.
The Managing Director of the Bank of Industry, Dr Olasupo Olusi, said the bank had disbursed nearly N2 trillion to Nigerian enterprises in three years, financing 42,000 nano enterprises, nearly 400 MSMEs and major agro-processing businesses, including those in Ondo State.
In Ondo State, nearly 10,000 individuals benefited from the National Credit Corporation, while 3,000 enterprises received credit guarantees.
He also listed tax exemptions for qualifying MSMEs from January 2026, free registration for 250,000 businesses, N450 billion in agricultural support, 2,000 tractors, 2.5 million bags of fertiliser and 300,000 bags of certified seeds.
Olusi said more than two million farmers had benefited from the interventions, adding that cocoa processing facilities in Akure and Ile-Oluji had been revitalised.
Similarly, the Director-General of the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), Charles Odii, challenged Ondo and Cross River states to raise Nigeria’s cocoa production to Ghana’s level before 2031, pledging the support of Federal Government agencies.
He said increased local processing would boost export earnings, create jobs and expand opportunities across the cocoa value chain.
Odii said SMEDAN and other government agencies would collaborate with Ondo and Cross River states to restore cocoa’s leading position.
Those in attendance included the wife of the Governor, Mrs Esther Aiyedatiwa; wife of the Deputy Governor, Dr Abosede Adelami; Commissioner for Water Resources, Public Sanitation and Hygiene, Ayodele Akande; Commissioner for Education, Prof Igbekele Ajibefun; Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Mr. Afolabi Adesoji, among others.
(vitalnewsngr.com)
