Gov. Peter Mbah of Enugu on Monday, assured firms in the state of sustained ease of doing business under his administration.
Mbah gave the assurance during the tour of a China firm, Sapphire Ceramics Company, at Obinofia Ndiuno in Ezeagu Local Government Area, Enugu State.
He said that the successes recorded by the company were testimonies to the state’s improved business environment, and a further assurance that government’s vision to grow the economy from $4.4 billion to $30 billion was realisable.
The governor called on both local and foreign investors to take advantage of the policy, and the abundance of mineral resources in the state to invest.
“Frankly, this is exactly what we had in mind when we made the announcement that we were going to grow our economy exponentially.
“What we have planned is to see how we will have a government-enabled platform, but private sector-driven growth; and that is essentially what we have come here today to witness.
“So, having such a humongous industry, a factory that is producing 75,000 square meters of tiles everyday, and also has over 800 employees, is good for our economy.
“And essentially, stories like this assure us of the fact that our projection of growing this economy to $30 billion is realisable,” he said.
Mbah said that the government would ensure that it continued to put policies in place, to expand operations of firms to a scale where they would employ more people.
According to him, private sector investment will not happen by chance, but through painstaking and well-crafted policies to attract investors.
“So, we are mindful of all the key indicators of the ease of doing business, infrastructure; security; efficient legal and regulatory framework, among others.
“We are not just going to provide the environment to do business, but help you to de-risk your investment so that, indeed, Enugu will be that premier destination for investment,” he said.
Speaking earlier, the Managing Director, Sapphire Ceramics, Mr Wang Chengfang, commended Mbah’s administration for rolling out policies, programmes, and development projects that supported business growth and guarantee return on investment.
Chengfang said that the company was honoured to choose to invest and set up its factory in Enugu State.
”In today’s complex global economic environment, we have been working with the government to contribute to the state’s economic development.
“Despite the current situation of unstable Naira exchange rate and increasing competitive pressure, we have always adhered to our original intention.
“We have worked hard to improve the quality of our products, so that the company can gain greater development advantages in a difficult environment,” he said.
The managing director said that the company had increased from the initial 300 local workers to nearly 800 workers, adding that in future, it would try its best to develop and broaden investment directions to create more jobs for Enugu State.
He urged potential investors to look in the direction of Enugu State for their investments.
“As we all know, Enugu State is rich in mineral resources. Our company has chosen to invest and base itself in Enugu State. It also has a huge demand for mineral resources in terms of production.
“We have always hoped to fully cooperate with the state government to strive to develop and make good use of the state’s rich mineral resources, and contribute to the state’s economic development,” Chengfang said.
He said that Sapphire Ceramics would be joining the Mbah’s administration in its investment promotion effort, and called on more Chinese companies to invest in Enugu State and contribute to the ‘New Enugu City’ development plan. (NAN)
