The Abia Government, in alignment with Gov. Alex Otti’s vision to rejuvenate the state economy, has commenced the process of revamping some of the public and privately owned industries that went under many decades ago.

The Commissioner for Industry and SMEs, Mr Mike Akpara, disclosed this in an interview with NAN in Umuahia, saying that government had paid N6 billion to the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) to buy back two moribund industries in Aba.

According to Akpara, the government paid N2.5 billion to settle Star Paper Mill’s indebtedness to AMCON and N3.5 billion for Afro Beverages.

He said that the intervention was part of the governor’s commitment to resuscitate the industries that were considered viable and with the prospects of creating employment opportunities.

He said: “We can confidently tell you that we have taken over two industries from AMCON.

“One of them, Afro Beverages, has already been handed over to an investor under a 90:10 equity arrangement.

He said that government retained 10 per cent equity to enable operations monitoring and ensure the company achieved its intended objectives.

“The main aim is to get those companies running, add to the GDP and create job opportunities for our people,” Akpara said.

He said that Star Paper Mill was still open to potential investors, with the government reviewing proposals for its acquisition, reactivation or lease.

He said that government was also working to resolve ownership and legal disputes affecting other grounded industries across the state.

Akpara listed the International Glass Industry, Ogwe Golden Chicken, Canned Biscuit, and Modern Ceramics, among the companies in dire condition, requiring government’s intervention.

He said that some of the companies had suffered so much vandalism, while others were entangled in court cases and ownership disputes.

“One thing about reactivating moribund industries is that it is not an easy task, and it doesn’t come in a jiffy,” he said.

Akpara further said that government was pursuing amicable settlements, where possible, to enable potential investors and competent managers to return the companies for production.

He also said that the State Government was simultaneously negotiating with investors interested in establishing ceramic, cement and flour factories in the state.

“Our responsibility as a government is to create an enabling environment for them to operate.

“Government can provide land or make it part of its contributions, where investors required suitable locations for their businesses,” Akpara said.

He disclosed that plans were underway to establish a brewery in Abia, with the investors having secured land for the project.

He said that attracting industries would create employment, reduce youth restiveness and strengthen the state’s economy.

The commissioner further recalled that as part of the government’s efforts to achieve industrialisation, it embarked on the construction of the Abia Industrial Innovation Park (AIIP) in Owaza, Ukwa West, because of its proximity to gas deposit in the area.

According to him, investors, including a steel company, have already showed interest in developing facilities within the industrial park.

Akpara said that reliable electricity remained critical to industrial revival, pointing out that many industries collapsed because of inadequate power supply.

He said that Gov. Otti, conscious of the strategic importance of regular power supply to industrial growth, worked hard to resolve the issues affecting Geometric Power operations in Aba as soon as he assumed office in 2023.

He said that improved power supply would reduce production costs for manufacturers who, before now, depended heavily on diesel generators.

Akpara acknowledged that rebuilding Abia’s industrial base would take time because of the extent of deterioration inherited by the present administration.

“The decay we met in Abia was not created in one day. It accumulated over more than 24 years,” he said.

He expressed optimism that continued investment in infrastructure, security and industrial development would attract more investors and create employment.

In his contribution, Dr Catherine Igbokwe, the President, Umuahia Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture, commended Otti’s efforts towards revamping dead industries, with the buyback of Star Paper Mill and Afro Beverages.

Igbokwe said that the government’s decision to reclaim the companies and make them available to investors would stimulate production, employment and economic growth.

She cited the Aba Textile Mills, International Glass Industry and Ogwe Golden Chicken Ltd among the companies deserving government’s attention.

She, however, cautioned against unbridled focus on projects that do not directly support industrialisation, especially at a time of high unemployment rate.

“Flyovers do not actually improve the economy. If you build good roads, investors will come because investors move through roads,” she said.

Igbokwe said that investors considered security, infrastructure, electricity, water and housing before committing resources to any location.

Also, an Aba-based industrialist, Chief Jerry Kalu, said that inadequate power remained the major factor crippling industries, urging the government to prioritise reliable power for industrial growth.

“The major thing that killed industries, in my view, is inadequate power, because without power, there is nothing you can do. You cannot produce,” Kalu said.

He said that high energy cost pushes the price of locally manufactured goods, prevents businesses from taking full advantage of Nigeria’s large consumer market.

The industrialist also called for more power-generating companies and stations in Abia to reduce dependence on a single source.

Kalu said that the State Government’s investment in power and infrastructure should accompany industrial development because both were fundamental to sustainable production.

“Power and infrastructure are the superstructure upon which industrialisation depends,” he said.

He urged the government to sustain efforts to recover and revive more moribund industries across the state.

Kalu said that reviving industries without addressing their energy needs would leave investors to face high production costs and undermine the objective of industrialisation.

Meanwhile, when a NAN correspondent visited Aba Star Paper Mills on Aba-Owerri Road and Aba Textile Mills on Factory Road, only the security men were seen at their duty post, while the premises still looked deserted, with no human or operational activities.

Some of the respondents appealed to the State Government to fast-track the concessioning process and bring in investors with capacity to revive and operationalise the industries in order to achieve the ultimate objective of growing the economy and creating employment.

The approach towards industrial growth in Imo is slightly different as the government is wooing back home, Imo-born industrialists with investments in other parts of the country and beyond.

The Commissioner for Industry, Mines and Solid Minerals, Mr Jerry Egemba, disclosed this while speaking on the neglect of state-owned industries.

Egemba said the government was developing industrial clusters at Naze and Onitsha-Owerri Road, Owerri, to accommodate the industrialists that were expected to relocate their investments home.

He said that given government’s investments in electricity generation, with the Orashi Indigenous Power Plant, massive road construction efforts, and the completion of ongoing work in the industrial clusters, Imo would soon become properly positioned for industrial growth.

He said that the Standard Shoe Industries, a signature indigenous shoe company in the state, is currently being resuscitated to begin production, having been concessioned to a private company, under a Public Private Partnership initiative.

Egemba explained that the government’s broader vision for industrialisation informed the upgrade of the Sam Mbakwe International Cargo Airport to a level where international passenger flights could take-off from the airport.

“We want to promote the idea of made-in-Imo shoes and our industrialists are buying into it.

“Imo boasts of industrialists in Onitsha, Aba, Uyo and other places, and we are confident that with the ongoing revitalisation efforts across our existing industries and the development of new ones, they will come home and invest here,” he said.

The commissioner further said that plans were on to build more industries, with investors “seriously negotiating with the State Government.

“We are currently working on different proposals from sons and daughters of Imo in the diaspora for the establishment of industries in the state.

“As we speak, a cosmetics brand from Hong Kong is getting ready to invest in Imo, with a projected minimum employment capacity of at least 500 persons.

“The company, led by a professor of Cosmetology, married to one of our sons, will be located at the Industrial Layout, Onitsha Road, Owerri,” he said.

Egemba also said that the State Government was talking with Sinclair Oriental Power Company “to assist with the development of an industrial gas-fired power plant”.

He explained that the plant would focus more on power and energy generation and distribution.

He said that the government would set up a biscuit manufacturing plant at the Onitsha Road and Naze North Industrial Parks.

Egemba said that his ministry had actively begun to identify solid mineral deposits in the state with a view to determine their commercial value and quantity for possible exploitation and industrial use.

He expressed the hope that the projects would be completed before the end of Gov. Hope Uzodimma’s administration.

Contributing, a retired Deputy Commissioner of Police, Mr Christian Molokwu, challenged the government to “walk the talk and show results”.

Molokwu commended the State Government for its efforts in power generation and road reconstruction, especially in the New Owerri area.

The respondents underscored the imperatives of governments’ genuine and deliberate investment in the industrial sector for job creation and economic growth in the South-East. (NAN)