By CHARLES IWUOHA

Enugu State Governor, Peter Mbah, says that his administration is set to attract, at least, Two Billion United States Dollars ($2bn) in additional investment through the Enugu State Diaspora and Investment Forum (ES-DIF) which billed for April, 2024.

The Governor disclosed this on Monday during a Press Conference held at Lion Building, Government House, Enugu.

Mbah said the ES-DIF will be heralded by the hosting of an Investment and Economic Growth Stakeholder Roundtable in September, 2023.

According to the Governor: “The Enugu State Diaspora and Investment Forum will be a multi-stakeholder, fully transactional platform championed by the Enugu State Government to match project sponsors, domestic and international financial institutions, private investors, including the diaspora investing community, and development partners to viable investment opportunities in the state that can deliver optimal risk-adjusted returns for the global investing community whilst also increasing Enugu State’s global competitiveness and driving suitable development outcomes in the state.”

The Governor further noted that his administration has made a concerted effort to identify commercially viable investment and business opportunities that cut across multiple sectors including energy, agribusiness, tourism, and transport, as well as the data centre economy.

"We intend to pursue new investment partnerships with financiers, project sponsors and developers, and technical assistance providers to structure, implement and unlock these value transactions.

“To achieve this, I will host an Investment and Economic Growth Stakeholder Roundtable in September 2023 to engage bilateral and multilateral development partners, as well as senior-level executives from commercial banks, public and corporate pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, private equity funds, infrastructure funds, and other domestic financial institutions for a systematic discussion on advancing viable investment opportunities in the state as my administration steers Enugu State on a path to private sector-led economic transformation.”

He added that that roundtable would be like a roadshow to showcase the investment potentials of Enugu State and the areas the investors can close deal on.

“We’re going to be marketing Enugu State across the different productivity sectors. We will showcase to them, the areas they can invest in in Enugu," the Governor added.

The Governor said that Enugu was now open for business and extended invitations to “public and private project sponsors, pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, private equity funds infrastructure funds, private investors, the African diaspora, and bilateral and multilateral development financial institutions to co-invest in Enugu State."

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