Otu: We’ve Secured $3.5bn To Finance Bakassi Deep Seaport Project

…says govt prioritising agriculture to attain food sufficiency

Cross River State Governor, Prince Bassey Otu, revealed on Tuesday that a $3.5 billion facility has been secured from the Afreximbank to fund the Bakassi Deep Seaport Project.

The Governor made the disclosure shortly after he was presented with the Award of Governor of the Year for Economic Revitalisation by Blueprint Newspapers Limited in Abuja.

Represented by his Special Adviser on Media (Abuja), Comrade Emmanuel Ogbeche, Governor Otu reiterated his government’s commitment to building a viable and sustainable economy.

As part of measures to achieve that goal, Otu said priority was being given to agriculture through investments in high- yield crops.

He urged Cross Riverians to continue to support the policies and programmes of government, for enhanced growth and development.

He said: “Our government has already secured $3.5 billion in funding from Afreximbank for the Bakassi Deep Seaport Project.

“Our economic and agricultural drive would have been crawling but for the active support of Mr President, who has tripled the allocations to states.

“To this, we remain unshaken that this country is on the path of sustainable economic growth and all Nigerians should continue to support President Bola Tinubu as the difficult days are almost over.”

In recognition of the comparative advantage the State has in agriculture, Otu announced that government was prioritising investment in high-yield crops.

This, he said, was in a bid to make farming attractive to young Cross Riverians, as well as residents.

His words: “A little over three years ago when we took over the reins of government, it was based on People First, and that priority has not changed in our service to our people of Cross River State.

“To this end, we identified economic and agricultural growth as development as basis on which we can realise this noble objective.

Ever since then, we have continued to invest in Cross Riverians, create an enabling environment for investors and seek new opportunities and prospects in this regard.

It is heartwarming to state that our government has made positive strides on several economic and agricultural fronts.

“As a firm supporter of the courageous drive of our dear President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, of growing a $1trillion economy, we are persuaded that this is achievable if we can revolutionise our agriculture and make it profitable. And that is exactly what our government is doing in Cross River State.

“Our government is revolutionising agriculture and making it attractive to young people in our state by heavily investing in high-yielding crops after extensive soil testing in the early days of our administration. Our aim is not only to boost the export potential of our state, but to create jobs and ensure food security.”