The Abia State Government said it has secured a deal with Huajian Shoe Industry in Dongguan, Guangzhou, China to establish a shoe factory in Aba, the state’s commercial hub.
A statement from Enyinnaya Apollos, chief press secretary to the State Governor, Okezie Ikpeazu, explained that the governor brokered a $1.5 billion project with the Chinese firm for the establishment of a shoe factory in Aba, which currently hosts the biggest finished leather cluster in Nigeria.
Ikpeazu, secured the deal during a meeting with Zhang Huarong, group chairman, Huajian Group, in the course of his official visit to China for the First Nigeria-China Governors Investment Forum.
The Abia-Huajian Shoe Industrial City, which will be located in Aba, would have capacity to produce 5,000 shoes per day and would provide about 10,000 direct and indirect jobs.
The Abia State Government will provide the land and other investment incentives for the project , while the Huajian Group would fund the entire project.
Huarong, who noted that Governor Ikpeazu was thefirst Nigerian Leader to visit him, disclosed that the Huajian Group is currently developing a 250 Acre Industrial City in Ethiopia and expressed his eagerness to come to Nigeria.
Huajian Group currently employs about 20,000 staff in China and operates a 10,000 shoes per-day factory in Dongguan, valued at $2 billion.
Huarong assured that he would visit the governor in Abia before the end of April, 2017 for further discussion on the project.
GODFREY OFURUM
