Nigerian manufacturers and other members of the Organised Private Sector will participate at the 38th Kaduna International Trade Fair scheduled to take place between February 24 and March 6, 2017.
Olusegun Obasanjo, a farmer and Nigeria’s former president, will equally chair a session, according to information released by the organiser, Kaduna Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KADCCIMA).
“We are expecting manufacturers, business men, policy makers and other key players in the infrastructure sector,” said Garuba Salawa, director-general, Kaduna Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture. (KADCCIMA), told BusinessDay.
The theme of the Kaduna International Trade Fair is, ‘Promoting Public Private Partnership as Panacea for Accelerated Growth and Development’, and is targeted at bringing together the private sector and the government to ensure that both actors collaborate to build major infrastructure.
Manufacturers and farmers need infrastructure for efficient productivity and distribution of produce/ products. Infrastructure is also a key ingredient for economic integration and development. The organisers believe a collaboration between private and public sectors will ensure sound infrastructure.
Muheeba Farida Dankaka, president of KADCCIMA, assured participants that Kaduna is the safest place in Northern Nigeria.
According to Dankaka, investors will be coming to Kaduna from outside Nigeria to explore opportunities in the state, stressing that the recent tension that enveloped Southern Kaduna has been doused.
“There is more than 200 kilometres between where the Southern Kaduna incident happened and the venue of the trade fair. Besides, the Federal and the state governments have been able to douse the tension,” she said.
Suleiman Aliyu, second deputy president of the chamber and chairman of the trade fair organising committee, said the promotion of the public-private partnership will go a long way in reducing Nigeria’s addiction to oil and gas, adding that it has become evident that Nigeria cannot muster the resources to meet its huge infrastructure needs.
“Nigeria has huge infrastructure challenges. Recent reports suggest that the country requires between $12 to $15 billion annually for the next six years to meet its infrastructure requirements,” Aliyu said.
“It has become evident that the government alone cannot muster the resources, hence the involvement of the private sector is not just desirous but necessary. It is no wonder, therefore, that majority of infrastructure projects currently underway at both state and federal levels are powered by PPPs,” he stressed.
He said the ten-day event also incorporates a quiz for secondary school students from 19 Northern Nigeria states, adding that local and foreign investors will participate. He said the chamber is in close contact with ministries, departments and agencies at federal and state levels, as well as with Nigerian missions abroad to ensure greater participation.
