Dr Kayode Fayemi, the governor of Ekiti State has called on Ekiti indigenes resident in and outside Nigeria to bring their wealth of resources and knowledge to bear on the development of the State.
Speaking in Ado Ekiti at the 2019 Ekiti Diaspora homecoming, the governor stated that the support of the diasporans will create more opportunities for Ekiti people especially in crucial areas such as education, infrastructure, healthcare, agriculture, job creation and tourism which government is focusing attention on.
Dr Fayemi who noted that all hands must be on deck to “jointly build the State of our dreams” asserted that the State is blessed with resources that can reposition it for better.
He urged them to use their connections to bring investors “who will add values to the socio-economic development” of the State; stressing that the State is open to investments.
“Ekiti State is our own and we need to support it in the areas of education, healthcare delivery, infrastructure, agriculture, job creation and tourism. Our government has prioritized these crucial sectors but we cannot do it all alone. As a responsible government, we will continue to stress the importance of engaging with you. We are ready to work with you in the spirit of cooperation and benefit of Ekiti State. Government needs your potential for its socio-economic advancement”, he said.
While inaugurating the coordinators for the National Youth Council of Nigeria in the 16 local government areas of the State, the governor stated that youths are very germane to the programme of his administration hence the various youth-focused programmes being carried out by the administration.
Fayemi assured the youths of government’s support so that they can make optimal use of their potential for the development of the State.
In her remarks, the Chairman of the Nigerian Diasporan Commission, Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa commended Governor Fayemi for creating the office of the SSA Diaspora Affairs; saying that the gesture was a demonstration that Fayemi is a diaspora-friendly governor.
Dabiri-Erewa said the state government can tap from the repertoire of resources available from the diasporans especially as they can contribute to the realization of the vision of the government.
In his speech, the Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Diaspora Affairs, Mr Femi Odere said the homecoming was aimed at incorporating Ekiti indigenes outside the state to the developmental programmes of the Fayemi-led government.
Odere said the diasporans are critical to the development of the state because of their experiences, technical know-how and material resources that can be pooled together for the all round rapid development of the State.
Also speaking at the event, Mrs Jumoke Adamolekun who resides in Virginia, USA commended Fayemi for coming up with Knowledge Economy as one of the agenda of his government.
Adamolekun said that many young people who have taken to internet fraud popularly called “yahoo-yahoo” can gainfully deploy their intelligence to data coding and encryption by keying into the knowledge economy programme rather than continuing with internet fraud.
Packaged by Emmanuel Adeniran
