Economy
Kogi gov promises to sustain enabling environment for investors
Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi on Tuesday pledged to maintain and improve the enabling environment to continue to attract more investors to the state.
Bello gave the assurance during the inauguration and inauguration of DOA Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG), “DOA GAS” in phase 2, Lokoja.
Bello praised the management of DOA Gas for their decision to invest in the state, thereby creating jobs for young people.
Bello, represented by the State Commissioner for Trade and Industry, Mr Gabriel Olofu, reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to creating an enabling environment to attract more investors to the State.
The governor assured the company of the government’s unwavering support and patronage.
He further praised the company for being an employer of manpower. “If you succeed, the government will succeed.”
He urged the indigenous Kogi of the country and the diaspora to invest in all spheres of the state’s economy in order to provide employment opportunities to reduce unrest and poverty in the state.
The governor has promised to partner and synergize with individual companies and organizations, who may want to do business in the state.
He stressed that the state has put in place mechanisms to ensure that tax exemption is granted to new investors in the state.
He noted that DOA GAS has become the most recent private company to answer the call to join its administration in moving the state forward.
Earlier, DOA Gas Managing Director Mr David Achimugu said that DOA Gas is a subsidiary of DOA Integrated Platform Group, currently focusing on providing LPG or cooking gas to consumers at a very competitive price.
He explained that the DOA Integrated Platform was incorporated in 2017 and has been a fast-growing company playing a leading role in the development of the agricultural sector.
He added that the company has also diversified into the clean and renewable energy sector to meet consumer demands at a competitive price.
He praised the federal government for creating opportunities for investors by setting a goal of five million metric tonnes (MT) of LPG for the country by 2022.
He noted that the goal set by the FG had prompted him to introduce DOA cooking gas to the market to create a healthier life for the people.
“A report from the Petroleum Price Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) indicates that Nigeria consumed 840,594.37 MT of LPG in 2019, indicating a 60.5% increase from the over 635,452.061 MT recorded in 2018.
The report also goes on to say that the country is on track to meet the target of five million tonnes by 2022, as set out in Nigeria’s gas policy of 2017.
“With this in mind, DOA Gas was created to do our part in fulfilling the mandate and to create healthier lives for Nigerians by providing them with access to a cleaner source of energy for cooking, transporting vehicles. and other domestic and industrial uses.
“Clean cooking energy has remained and, as such, should be readily available to end-users,” Achimugu said.
He commended the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), the Kogi government and all relevant agencies involved in the protection and promotion of the gas sector.
The highlight of the occasion was the official commissioning of the DOA Cooking Gas Plant by the Commissioner on behalf of the Governor.
Other stakeholders at the event were representatives from the DPR, federal and state fire departments, consumers, UBA, Zenith Bank, among others. (NAN)
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