Director-General of the World Trade Organisation, WTO, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has said Delta State has the capacity to emerge as Nigeria’s next major industrial hub alongside Lagos, while endorsing the state’s over $100 million investment fund as a bold step towards attracting investors.
Speaking at the Delta State Economic and Investment Summit, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said she is convinced that Delta state possesses the ingredients to become Nigeria’s next great industrial hub, standing alongside Lagos as an engine of the national economy.
According to her, changing global trade patterns have opened new opportunities for Delta and Nigeria.
She urged the state government to make Special Economic Zones the centrepiece of its industrialization drive.
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala also advised the state to prioritize a few value chains instead of spreading scarce resources.
She identified the blue economy as another major opportunity, noting that Nigeria imports about 573,000 metric tonnes of fish and fish products worth almost 866 million dollars every year.