By Rasheeda Hamidu
More than 40 Egyptian investors, manufacturers, agribusiness operators and mining businesses have expressed interest in agricultural, agro-processing and mineral-resource projects in Ekiti State, with a potential investment pipeline of up to $500 million, as the state seeks to expand local processing and reduce the export of raw resources.
The development followed the Ekiti-Egypt Industrial Investment Mission held in Cairo from July 24 to 28, Business Insider Africa reported on Sunday, with the discussions covering commercial agriculture, food processing, seed production, textiles, manufacturing and solid minerals.
The mission was organised by Welcome2Africa International in partnership with the Ekiti State Government as part of efforts to attract international investment, create jobs and develop industries around the state’s agricultural and mineral resources.
The investment discussions included commercial maize and soybean production, certified seed production, cassava and maize processing, and an integrated agro-industrial project involving wet corn milling, starch production, animal feed manufacturing, poultry and large-scale farming.
The state government said projects considered during the mission could attract more than $200 million in the immediate to medium term, while the wider pipeline could reach $500 million if additional proposals progress, eight Expressions of Interest were also generated from the mission.
Ekiti Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Security, Ebenezer Boluwade, said the state was seeking to develop agricultural value chains that would provide farmers with reliable markets while ensuring processors have access to the volumes and quality of raw materials required for production.
“We want to build agricultural value chains where farmers have reliable markets, processors have access to the volumes and quality they require, and more of the value created from our agricultural resources remains within Ekiti,” Boluwade said.
Among the proposals is an integrated agro-industrial partnership estimated at between $75 million and $150 million, which could combine crop production with processing and livestock-related activities.
Other opportunities include a $20 million cassava and maize processing partnership and agricultural projects involving maize and sesame.
The mission also explored opportunities in solid minerals, highlighting the state’s efforts to move beyond the extraction of raw materials towards greater domestic processing and value addition.
Founder of Welcome2Africa International, Bamidele Seun Owoola, said discussions had moved beyond general investment promotion to specific proposals involving farmland, factories, processing plants, joint ventures, mining assets, offtake agreements and market access.
The Commissioner for Investment, Trade and Industry, Omotayo Adeola, said the immediate priority was to convert investors’ expressions of interest into concrete investments through site visits, commercial agreements, capital deployment and factory establishment.
The proposed investments could create direct and indirect employment while strengthening agricultural value chains and increasing the amount of economic value retained within the state.
A separate report said one textile manufacturer was considering an investment of between $30 million and $80 million, potentially creating thousands of direct and indirect jobs.
However, the proposed $500 million should not be interpreted as confirmed investment yet, as the projects remain at different stages of commercial discussions and Expressions of Interest.
The next stages will involve due diligence, site assessments, negotiations and other processes before capital is actually deployed.
NatureNews notes that linking foreign investment to local processing of agricultural and mineral resources could help Ekiti reduce dependence on raw-material exports while creating opportunities for more efficient resource use, industrial development and value addition; however, the environmental sustainability of proposed mining, farming and processing projects will depend on proper regulation, impact assessments and responsible resource management.
