Ekiti state government, on Monday, said it had concluded plans to enter into partnership with a Brazilian organization, Africa –Brazil International Forum, in agribusiness, monorail and Bus Rapid Transit (BRT).
Gov. Kayode Fayemi, who made this known when he met with officials of the organisation in his office in Ado-Ekiti, said that improving transportation and agriculture in Ekiti State were part of his administration’s plans.
He said his government would gladly partner with the organization to actualise some of his laudable programmes, particularly in agriculture and transportation.
The governor noted that Brazil had taken some giant strides in agriculture, having the most successful agricultural research organization in the world, and hence the interest of Ekiti to tap from their wealth of experience, particularly in the areas of research and technology.
He revealed that Ekiti and Brazil had a lot in common, including climate and the types of crops available in the two zones.
” This is because everything I saw in Brazil, climate wise, soil wise was almost as if I was back in Ekiti.
” During my first term in office I spent some time in Brazil and I visited one of the most successful agricultural research organizations in the whole world, and we were able to learn a lot about what makes agriculture successful there.
” The successful crops are those that we have here, cocoa, tubers and grains. But Brazilians have done more to advance via technology, via research and there is a lot for us to learn from the experience of Brazil”, he said.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Gov. Fayemi also urged more national and international business consortiums to come and invest in the state, saying that Ekiti was ready and open for business collaboration that would impact positively on the lives of the people.
He said the state’s Investment and Development Promotion Agency would drive the partnership alongside the Ministry of Arts and Culture, in an effort to strengthen the bond of cooperation.
Fayemi further said: “For us, this is the beginning of an exciting relationship on the practical side, in terms of agricultural cooperation but also on the cultural side
” For us, culture is very central to development and if we connect the two worlds, I know that we would make giant strides in our partnership”.
Earlier, the General Secretary of the Forum, Lucas Andrade, revealed that his association had over one million farmers, with a team of over 25 investors, ready to work with the state government to bring more development to the state.
Andrade, whose Yoruba name is Adeyemi Awurela, said the technical project was expected to bring a lot of food to the state through its agricultural programme, adding that the mobility system would help bring radical development to the state.
The State Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Prof Rasak Ojo Bakare, said the visit of the Brazilians was sequel to a trip by the Ministry’s top officials to Brazil last year.
He explained that the trip had yielded positive results, not only for the tourism industry, but also for other areas of the state’s economy.
Bakare revealed that over 25 investors had shown interests in coming to Ekiti to invest, in the different areas of the economy, under what he called the Brazil-Ekiti Project (BRAKIT).