• Thanks private sector, others
• Investors to provide facilities
AS controversy rages with threats of protests from some civil society groups, the Federal Government has continued with programmes lined up to celebrate 100 years of amalgamation of the colonial Southern and Northern Protectorates of Nigeria.
After the presidential dinner which kicked off the events, an Investors' Forum, which held Tuesday in Abuja, witnessed the unveiling of one of the endearing legacies of the celebration, the Abuja Centenary City, planned to promote international and local businesses while boosting economic activities in Nigeria and creating a solid example for the future of urban development in the country.
Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Anyim Pius Anyim, while presenting the models to likely investors, said "the new smart city would be built on a stretch of 1,000 hectares of land in Abuja, making it the second but largest city development in history."
He said the business hub would not only attract a record 500,000 visitors daily, "by the end of its five-year development cycle, this innovative and vibrant city would have created over 50,000 construction jobs and 5,000 permanent well-paying jobs and residential population of 100,000 people".
Anyim hinted that all the features that have contributed to the success stories of cities of this nature such as Trade Free Zone, Duty Free Regime, tax holiday, chartered status, offshore status, outstanding infrastructure and secure business environment, among others, as obtained in Dubai, Monaco, Shenzhen and Songdo, would be provided.
He said although the project would be private sector sponsored, "government's presence is imperative to the survival of the city. Therefore, political structure like a presidential retreat to serve as another operational base for the president and a presidential archive where our political development and contributions of our presidents and the Nigeria Institute of Federalism, would also be provided".
On his part, Minister of Culture and Tourism, Edem Duke, said: "We must re-orientate our minds to the fact that this city would also house middle income earners who work within the city, but the principle of this development is to reposition Nigeria as the cultural, commercial and entertainment capital of the continent".
When asked what impact the city would have on the largely unemployed Nigerian population, Duke said: "We will provide opportunities for wealth creation. This is an investment forum where we desire to see the expression of interest from investors who are ready to buy into the concept, and any information that would give the number of jobs that would be available at the completion of the project would not be realistic. Government would not throw up those kind of information because they are not backed up by facts."
President Goodluck Jonathan had expressed appreciation over the support of eminent Nigerians and corporate organisations who participated actively towards making the launch of the Centenary celebration a huge event.
He gave the commendation at the start of the Centenary anniversary celebration at the Banquet Hall, State House, Abuja on Monday night.
Among the personalities singled out by the Federal Government for their commitment to ensuring the success of the launch was Dr. Mike Adenuga Jr , the Chairman of Globacom Limited. Others were the President of Dangote Group of Companies, Alhaji Aliko Dangote; Mr. Bisi Onasanya and First Bank; Mr. Tony Elumelu and Heirs Limited, and Chief Cletus Ibeto and Ibeto Group of Companies.
"They have taken their pride of place and I urge all Nigerians to emulate them," the President said.
The Guardian