By Ojotule Romanus
Kogi State Governor, Alhaji Ahmed Usman Ododo, has desclosed that plans are in the pipeline by his administration to generate electricity from the state’s abundant solid mineral resources, particularly its coal deposits, as part of efforts to drive economic growth and create employment opportunities for residents.
A press statement issued and signed by the Special Adviser to the Governor on media, Ismaila Idah, a copy which was made available to The Graphic Newspaper in Lokoja has disclosed.
Governor Ododo disclosed this on Tuesday during a stakeholders’ engagement with members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the Government House in Lokoja.
The governor said Kogi’s vast mineral resources had remained largely untapped despite the potential to transform the state’s economy and improve livelihoods of its people.
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He identified the coal deposits in Ankpa and other parts of the state as key resources that could be harnessed to support the government’s development agenda.
“The coal deposits in Ankpa and other local government areas are enough to drive the prosperity agenda of the State Government , in addition to other solid mineral deposits in the state,” he said.
According to him, his administration is determined to turn the state’s natural resources into tangible economic benefits for the people by promoting development, creating jobs and improving standard of living among the people.
The governor also announced plans for a major recruitment exercise into the Kogi State Civil Service, saying hundreds of qualified residents would soon be given the opportunity to join the government workforce.
The governor assured that the planned recruitment would be conducted through a transparent and rigorous process to ensure that qualified citizens have a fair opportunity to secure employment.
He noted that the implementation of the new minimum wage by the State Government, improved federal allocations and increased internally generated revenue had strengthened the state’s financial capacity to sustain its workforce and shows that many of those who have retired or are on the verge of retirement from the state civil service could be replaced during the recruitment exercise.
“There are plans to make the resources of the state more available to many more people within the state, so they can feel the impact of the government,” he said.
Beyond economic and employment initiatives, the governor called for greater unity among the people of Kogi State, noting that internal divisions and the inability of the people to collectively support one another had constituted major obstacles to the state’s development.
He urged APC stakeholders and other residents to support the administration’s programmes and policies, stressing that collective action was necessary to achieve sustainable development in the state.
Governor Ododo also expressed appreciation to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for what he described as the federal government’s support to Kogi through increased funding and infrastructural interventions.
He cited the Federal Government’s intervention on the Abuja-Lokoja-Okene-Benin road, developments around the free trade zone at the Ajaokuta Economic City and investments in the state’s oil and gas sector as well as the proposed Kogi International Airport in Zariagi , saying the various interventions were designed to stimulate economic activity, attract investment and improve the welfare of the people Kogi state.
