"We are here on account of the massive political goodwill of His Excellency, Governor Hope Uzodimma who has masterfully navigated the gissues"~Richard Mark Mbaram
A second delegation of the AfDB and IFAD is visiting Imo State.
The Special Adviser to the Imo State Governor on Public Enlightenment, Prince Eze Ugochukwu interacted with the Technical Adviser of the visiting team.
Q: May we know you Sir.
Ans: My name is Richard Mark Mbaram. I am the Technical Adviser to the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development and the oversight officer for the Special Agro Industrial Processing Zone Project.
Q: What is the project all about.
Ans: This is a key project that the Federal Government is getting resources from the African Development Bank and the International Fund for Agricultural Development.
It is focused with assisting existing commercial/industrial agro industries in selected states to better cope with the challenges of infrastructural deficit in the country in such a way as to make them begin to break even and also impact the economy of the country using some selected model States. Imo State is one of them.
Q: What are the processes that led to this second visit to Imo State.
Ans: The process leading up to this point has been very challenging and competitive.
However, Imo state on account of the massive political goodwill of the Governor, His Excellency Senator Hope Uzodimma, who has been able to masterfully navigate the issues and realities around the competitiveness has brought the project to Imo State.
The process that we have here is the assessment of the state's competencies and justifying the project.
Q: Have Imo State been able to fulfill all the indicators to enable the takeoff of the project.
Ans: Imo State has been able to scale through the matrixes, one of which is existing brownfields. We have some brownfields in the state such as the Victoria farms, and Adapalm. The site in Okigwe is a brownfield in quote, because the Governor had been able to get the approval of the President for funding of that activity. Since the money is sitting at ecological fund, we have now dedicated or structurally positioned that project as the hub of the agric-processing zone program knowing fully well that we are going to be able to build it given the availability of resources.
But in doing that the best practice, the best expectations around that project had to be sort, and that is why the African Development Bank's Agricultural and Agro Industrial Directorate sent us as experts in livestocks, processing zones, and administration etc to come here.
Q: Is your team visiting Imo State as a follow up to what the earlier team has done.
Ans: That team had arrived last week. It had Fernando Lado and Yusuf Kabore. Yusuf Kobore is the chief livestock officer of the African Development Bank, while Fernando Lado is the adviser on livestock industrialisation.
They have worked with the Imo State government team and the lead consultant to evolve a clear plan of building the livestock agric industrial processing Zone and the hub.
After the visit this present team is here to look at the environmental social and climate change impact around the project.
This site where we are now in Owerri West Local Government is going to be providing feedstock to the cattle and livestock activities in Okigwe hub, and also for the Victoria Farms.They will be producing maize, cassava and most likely soya.
Q: What is your assessment so far.
Ans: Imo State from what my colleagues have said is pretty well positioned given the narrative that has been laid out around the way the agric industrial processing zone is going to run plus the industrialisation plans of His Excellency. Imo is looking pretty. Infact it is very well positioned.
Q: Do you have timelines for completion of the processes.
Ans: September is when the draw down will take effect.
NOTE: The Imo State Government team on the visit to Owerri West LGA comprises:-
•Dr. Lambert Orisakwe - Commissioner for Agriculture.
• Mrs. Obiageri Ajoku - Commissioner for Livestock Development.
• Dr. Goddy Esom Obodo, Managing Director of Adapalm Plantation.
• Hon. Mrs Ngozi Pat Ekeji - Special Adviser on Strategic Development.
Publisher: Don Martyn L.O Nwosu
Ikeduru APC Media Hub
08032950897
Ikeduruapcmediahub@gmail.com
 AND INTERNATIONAL FUND FOR AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT (IFAD) TOURS IMO STATE){kind=link}
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