By
Taiye Bayode
His Excellency, Kogi State Governor, Alhaji Ahmed Usman Ododo, has consistently identified the revival of the Ajaokuta Steel Complex and the industrialization of the state as central pillars of his administration’s economic agenda.
In furtherance of this vision, and in recognition of the recently approved Ajaokuta Free Trade Zone (FTZ), the Soyuznik Alumni Association, Nigeria, Kogi State Branch, on Wednesday convened its 2026 Annual Congress and Policy Dialogue, themed “Ajaokuta Free Trade Zone: Unlocking Kogi State’s Industrial and Economic Renaissance,” at Good Shepherd Hotels, Lokoja.
The event, which combined the branch’s substantive executive elections, its Annual General Meeting, and a policy dialogue session, brought together government officials, industry stakeholders, development partners, and members of the association, who are graduates of Russian and former Soviet Union institutions.
In a keynote address, the Director, Administration, Mr Ejeh Michael, representing the Honourable Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Alh. Muhammed Muktar Shuaibu, outlined the state government’s strategic pillars for driving industrialization through the Ajaokuta Free Trade Zone.
These include infrastructure development around power, roads, rail, and gas connectivity; investor-first incentives such as tax holidays and duty-free importation of machinery; a shift towards value-added processing in steel, agro-commodities, and solid minerals rather than raw material exports; and a commitment to local content, skills transfer, and environmental compliance.
He noted that the Ministry, under the administration of Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo, remains open to partnerships with investors, development partners, and diaspora stakeholders to reposition Kogi State as a preferred destination for manufacturing and export-driven industries in West and Central Africa.
State Chairman of Soyuznik Alumni Association, Hajia Rekiya Onaivo Sanni, on her own part, described the Ajaokuta Free Trade Zone as a historic opportunity for Kogi State, noting that the association’s members, by virtue of their training and technical backgrounds, were well positioned to contribute meaningfully to the state’s industrial and economic development.
The Chairman who commended the recent presidential approval of Ajaokuta as a free trade zone, also called for sustained advocacy and engagement between the association and relevant government institutions to ensuring the initiative achieves its full potential.
Delivering a keynote address on behalf of the National President of Soyuznik Alumni Association, Dr Wakiente Omubo, Engr. A.A. Yusuf commended the Kogi State branch for choosing a timely and strategic theme, noting that the state’s central location, mineral resources, and agricultural potential position it to become a major industrial hub if the free trade zone is properly harnessed, assuring the branch of the national body’s continued support for initiatives promoting education, research, and evidence-based public policy.
Also speaking on behalf of the Director-General of the Kogi State Commodity Exchange, Export Promotion and Market Development Agency (KOSCEPA), Chief Adewale Victor Omofaiye, the agency’s representative, Hon. Oluseyi Kelvin, highlighted the state government’s ongoing initiatives to strengthen trade development, including the licensing of the Ajaokuta Free Trade Zone, the revival of Ajaokuta Steel Company through a recent gas supply partnership with the NNPC, the Kogi State Cashew Trade Policy, and subsidised CAC registration for small businesses.
The representative described the agency’s mandate as serving as a bridge linking farmers, processors, and global markets under the framework of the free trade zone.
Furthermore, representative of the International Fund for Agricultural Development’s Value Chain Development Programme (IFAD/VCDP), Mr Yinka Victor Adewale, standing in for the State Programme Coordinator, Dr Stella Adejo, delivered a presentation on strengthening agricultural value chains and unlocking opportunities through agribusiness, outlining the strategic advantages of the Ajaokuta Free Trade Zone for agriculture, including its proximity to major transport corridors and its potential to support agro-processing, market expansion, and investment attraction, while also identifying infrastructure gaps, limited access to finance, and weak processing capacity as key challenges requiring coordinated policy intervention.
Chairman of the Nigerian Society of Engineers, Kogi State Branch, Engr. Emmanuel Adamu, also commended the association for convening a platform aimed at supporting inclusive, evidence-based economic growth, and used the opportunity to invite engineers within the gathering to join the Society’s ongoing activities in the state.
The House of Representatives Member representing Ajaokuta Federal Constituency, Hon. Sanni Abdulraheem Egidi, who served as guest speaker, described the Ajaokuta Free Trade Zone as a long-awaited turning point for the state and his constituency, highlighting existing infrastructure assets around Ajaokuta, including rail linkages to the Warri Port, road corridors, and available housing stock, which he said would support investors coming into the zone.
He commended the Kogi State Government’s shift from a civil-service-dependent economy towards industrialisation and job creation, and pledged his continued legislative support for the actualisation of the free trade zone.
Participants also highlighted job creation opportunities linked to the proposed international airport project and received assurances of continued moral and financial support for the actualisation of the Ajaokuta Free Trade Zone.
At the end of deliberations, resolutions, including confirmation that the free trade zone is export-ready, a call for stronger collaboration and partnership among all stakeholders, and an emphasis on the paradigm shift required to transition Kogi State from decades of civil-service dependence to an industrial economy.
