Non-Oil Exports: Bayelsa To Partner NEXIM Bank

YENAGOA –  Bayelsa State Government, Yesterday, in­dicated its preparedness to partner the Nigerian Ex­port-Import (NEXIM) Bank, in harnessing non-oil and gas resources in the state for export.

The Deputy Governor, maintained that Bayelsa has comparative advantage in aquaculture, fisheries, and other ventures.

The Deputy Gover­nor, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, made this known during a courtesy call on him by a delegation from NEXIM Bank, led by its South-South Regional Head, Mr. Soni Oseghale, in Government House, Yenagoa.

Expressing the belief that the objective of the bank was in line with the Assured Prosperity Agenda of the present administra­tion, Senator Ewhrudjakpo, however, debunked the im­pression that Bayelsa was a mono-product state.

He emphasised that apart from oil and gas, the state is richly endowed with a wide range of nat­ural resources, including fish and arable land capa­ble of producing rice, oil palm, plantain and several other crops in commercial quantities.

He urged the visiting team to undertake a tour to the state’s fish farm at the Yenegwe- Igbogene area, which has potential for producing enough fish to feed the state and for ex­port.

While calling on the NEXIM Bank to bring in their wealth of experience and expertise to help the state maximally harness its natural resources for ex­port, Senator Ewhrudjakpo assured them that the state investment team was pre­pared for all the necessary discussions and documen­tation to ensure the prompt take-off of the partnership deal.

His words: “Your mission here is quite apt for us as a government, and your ob­jective is also in line with that of our government of assured prosperity, espe­cially in the area of diver­sifying the economy.

“But let me again correct the impression that Bayelsa produces oil and gas only. We are not a mono-product state, but Bayelsa is often short-changed in several ways.

“Look at the tax reforms now; what is there for Bayelsa? You are doing a tax reform for VAT and oth­er things, but does oil not play a major part in VAT? There is VAT in the oil they are selling, but nobody is talking about it.”