The Southern Governors Forum has announced plans to establish the Southern States Development Agenda aiming to create a comprehensive strategy to enhance trade and investment, sustainable growth, economic prosperity, social harmony, and food security in the region.
The SSDA will collaborate closely with individual states’ Investment Promotion and Facilitation Agencies, the Nigeria Investment Promotion Commission and other multilateral agencies to achieve its goals.
This announcement was made in a communiqué issued at the end of the Forum’s meeting, held on Monday in Abeokuta, Ogun State. The meeting was attended by 13 governors and three deputy governors, who unanimously elected Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun as the new Chairman and Anambra State Governor Professor Charles Soludo as Vice Chairman.
The Forum resolved to adopt a more proactive approach to food security, urging all states to intensify their agricultural initiatives based on the cash and food crops best suited for each region to achieve food sufficiency, self-reliance, and employment generation. They also recommended setting up special agro-processing zones to maximize value from the agro-value chain.
The communiqué stated, “the Forum commended the laudable economic recovery reforms and policies of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR and the implementation of the Renewed Hope Agenda. The Forum unanimously reaffirmed their support for him in his unwavering resolve to reposition the country and build a great future for all of us.”
The Southern Governors praised President Tinubu for initiating the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Road project, noting that it will create employment, boost productivity by reducing travel time, promote tourism, and open up investment opportunities across Southern States. They also urged the Federal Government to rehabilitate and transfer Trunk A roads to states interested in taking them over.
The Forum plans to commission a regional multimodal transport master plan to enhance connectivity by rail, road, air, and water, facilitating interstate and intra-regional ease of doing business. They emphasized the need to address inadequate power supply in the region, aiming to achieve 90,000 MW of electricity for the estimated 90 million people in Southern Nigeria. States were encouraged to utilize the recent constitutional amendment allowing them to regulate, generate, transmit, and distribute electricity, including renewable sources.
The Forum also highlighted the necessity of an alternative power infrastructure grid to mitigate the impact of grid collapses. They supported the total deregulation of petrol and endorsed the President’s Energy Transition program, urging states to transition to Compressed Natural Gas and Electric Vehicles to cushion the effects on citizens.
Commending President Tinubu’s food palliative support to states, the Forum encouraged governors to continue complementing these efforts with their initiatives. The Forum also discussed the minimum wage issue, advocating that it should reflect the cost of living and allow states to negotiate individually. This led to discussions on fiscal federalism and the devolution of powers.
The Southern Governors reiterated their call for state police, citing the success of community-based regional security outfits in intelligence gathering. They expressed concerns over the current practices in solid mineral exploration and exploitation, which often occur without state government involvement, resulting in criminal activities, environmental degradation, and lost revenue for states and the Federal Government.
The Forum also addressed the tenure controversy of Local Government Chairmen in Rivers State, supporting the position of the law and constitution. They resolved to remain united, emphasizing the importance of intra-regional trade, partnerships, and investment facilitation.
“The Southern States Development Agenda will be set up and will comprise a team whose primary responsibility is to outline a holistic plan to foster trade and investment, sustainable growth and development, economic prosperity, social harmony, and food security for the region. They will work hand in glove with individual states’ Investment Promotion and Facilitation Agencies, the Nigeria Investment Promotion Commission and other multilateral agencies,” the communiqué concluded.
The Forum decided that its meetings will be held quarterly and rotated among member states.
