UDUAGHAN IN WASHINGTON DC, SEEKS PARTNERSHIP WITH WORLD BANK

 

FROM LEFT, GOVERNOR EMMANUEL UDUAGHAN, MANAGING DIRECTOR OF THE WORLD BANK, DR. NGOZI OKONJO-IWEALA AND ANOTHER OFFICIAL OF THE BANK, DURING A MEETING AT THE WORLD BANK HEADQUARTERS IN WASHINGTON DC, UNITED STATES

Delta State Governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan has said the state government is partnering with the World Bank to bring sustainable development to the state.
Governor Uduaghan disclosed this at a meeting with a World Bank team led by its Managing Director, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, at the bank’s headquarters in Washington DC.

The governor, who presented a “Delta Development Framework” to the bank’s officials at a meeting, said: “Delta State desires a vibrant working relationship with the World Bank for the benefit of Delta citizens”.

He said that the partnership would support the state government’s three-point agenda of peace and security, human capital development and infrastructure development.

He called on the bank to assist Delta state with technical support, financing of key projects, capacity building for government officials, support to open new markets for farmers and industries and support to build entrepreneurial industries.

Dr. Uduaghan noted that the partnership would also help to reduce poverty, as well as improve standard of living in Delta communities and ensure the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Governor Uduaghan also listed the areas of partnership to include agriculture, environment, human capital development, health, revenue generation, water resources, education, transport, energy and ICT.

He urged the bank to key into Delta government projects and programmes designed to boost socio-economic activities in the oil-producing communities in the state.

Earlier, Okonjo-Iweala expressed the desire of the bank to foster a working relationship with the state government, but stressed that the ethics of transparency, good governance, accountability, and peace and security was needed to actualise the partnership.

According to her, “This ethics are key to the World Bank and we urged the government to adhere to them to do business with us, so as to uplift the conditions of our people”.

The managing director, also commended Governor Uduaghan for his initiative to facilitate “concrete development” for the wellbeing of Deltans and urged him not to relent on his oars.

Some of the World Bank’s officials, who spoke at the meeting, said that there were opportunities to be explored by the bank to promote growth and development in the Niger Delta region.

They promised to work toward ensuring that the bank supports some development projects that have direct bearing on the welfare of the communities in Delta state.

governor Uduaghan, government officials and other eminent Delta personalities had earlier held an interactive session with some members of the U.S. business community in Washington DC.

The session dwelled on investment in education, health, agriculture, science and technology, information and communication, transportation and energy development.

 

 

GOV UDUAGHAN SPEAKS TO VOA, PLEDGES IMPROVED SECURITY, INVESTMENT

GOVERNOR UDUAGHAN (3RD FROM RIGHT) DURING HIS MEETING WITH WORLD BANK’S OFFICIALS IN WASHINGTON.

The governor of Nigeria’s Delta State says peace is returning to the oil-rich area. About three weeks ago, the government granted an amnesty to militant groups who say they’re fighting for a greater share of the region’s oil revenues for state and local communities. As a result of the amnesty, violence has diminished.
Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan, during a trip to the United States, says he’s guaranteeing improved security in the area. In fact, he says, the region is open for business.
“My message,” he says “is that Delta State is safe enough for any investor to come in and the investment will further strengthen the peace process that we have already built,” he says. “We have done a lot to ensure there is peace and security, especially for investors, and if they come, they are assured of security of their investments and a lot of profit.”
Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan is in Washington and New York City this week for meetings with government officials, businessmen and members of the Nigerian diaspora.

“As a state in the Niger Delta region and one of the nine in the area, Niger Delta has become an international issue and it requires everybody, both those at home, those that are here and of course the international community to achieve peace and development that we require,” he says.
For years, the region has been wracked by violent protests over environmental damage caused by oil drilling and complaints that the local area did not get a fair share of the oil revenue.

With most militant groups embracing the amnesty offer and disarming their members, Governor Uduaghan says security in the area has improved tremendously and the threat of either kidnapping of foreigners or the blowing up of oil facilities has been eliminated.
Skeptics should seek information from the area, he says, because all parties to the effort to bring permanent peace to the region will keep their end of the agreement.

“We have done a lot to make sure [the amnesty] succeeds. We are very optimistic [it] will succeed and if it [does], it is going to advance the peace process tremendously. It will be a very big avenue for the success of our peace process.”
TEXT OF INTERVIEW BELOW:

VOA: What are you doing to create a positive image of the state?

Uduaghan: My message to them is that Delta State is safe enough for any investor to come in and the investment will further strengthen the peace process, that we have already built, we have done a lot through our agenda on peace and security especially for investors and if they come, they are assured of the security of their investment and a lot of profit from their investment.

VOA: For those who are skeptical about this peace process, what do you have to say to them?
Uduaghan: We have a lot of hope on the amnesty, we have done a lot to make sure it succeeds and we are very optimistic that the amnesty will succeed, and if it succeeds, it is going to advance the peace process tremendously, it is a very big avenue for the success of our peace process.

VOA: Usually your other brother governors, don’t place a lot of emphasis on those in the Diaspora?

Uduaghan: All over the world, a lot of developed countries have succeeded because they have involved those in the Diaspora, China is a big example, Indian is another example even Israel is an example where Diaspora people play key role in the development of their country and of their state so, for us it cannot be different.

Secondly as a state we have a lot of human resources outside the state, human resources we believe can contribute tremendously to the development of this state. So that is the asset we are trying to tap by coming here.

VOA: Are you seeking a particular talent or a particular skill or is it just a mass movement of Deltans in Diaspora, you think you will find a gold that you need to move your state forward?

Uduaghan: We are not targeting any particular skill; we are targeting as many skills as possible because Delta has opportunities for various aspect of development, so those who can be involved in whatever manner are those we are actually targeting. We are targeting everyone that can contribute in one way or the other to the development of the state. The project really is to attract Deltan from every parts of the world, from Europe, Asia, America anywhere they are.

VOA: You are said to have on ground some infrastructure development, including building an International Airport, what is the thinking behind this?

Uduaghan: To be able to attract investment, you need some basic infrastructure, like transportation, – road, sea and air and the Asaba Airport have a lot of potentials for the Airport and to the glory of God we have gone far.

VOA: What message are you taking back from here after meeting your people in the US?

Uduaghan: Coming here has further strengthened my resolve of the possibility that Delta State can be the destination hub for any investor in the world. There are a lot of potentials in the state, which coming here and discussing with them, in fact some of them know so much about the state and we shared a lot of ideas. I also discovered that the international communities, they are interested in Delta State, what have been bothering them is peace and security, with the discussion we had and some of the assurances I gave to them and information I gave to them, I believe that they will take the decision to come to Delta because they are better informed now than they were before.

GOVERNOR UDUAGHAN: SCENES FROM DELTA STATE

  

SCENES FROM GOVERNOR EMMANUEL UDUAGHAN’S TOWN HALL MEETINGS HELD AT EFFURUN, OLEH AND AGBOR BETWEEN AUGUST 19 AND 21, 2009

WHEN GOVERNOR EMMANUEL UDUAGHAN ADOPTED JAPHET OMENE AT THE TOWN HALL MEETING HELD IN EFFURUN, AUGUST 19, 2009

WHEN GOVERNOR UDUAGHAN HELD A SPECIAL THANKSGIVING SERVICE AT THE UNITY HALL, GOVERNMENT HOUSE, ASABA, FOLLOWING HIS VICTORY AT THE GOVERNORSHIP ELECTION PETITIONS TRIBUNAL, THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2009.

WHEN DELTA STATE GOVERNMENT DONATED 35 TOYOTA HILUX VANS AND TWO ARMOURED PERSONNEL CARRIERS TO THE DELTA STATE POLICE COMMAND, WEDNESDAY, JUNE 3, 2009.

DURING GOVERNOR UDUAGHAN’S ASSESSMENT TOUR OF CAMP 5 AND OPOROZA, AFTER JTF RAIDS.

WHEN GOVERNOR EMMANUEL UDUAGHAN DELIVERED THE ANNUAL SOCIOLOGY/ANTHROPOLOGY LECTURE OF THE UNIVERSITY OF NIGERIA NSUKKA, ENTITLED “EFFECTIVE GOVERNANCE IN THE 21ST CENTURY” ON MAY 25, 2009, AT NSUKKA.

D3 LAUNCHING: UDUAGHAN IN NEW YORK, BLAMES NIGER DELTA CRISIS, ILLEGAL OIL BUNKERING ON FOREIGNERS

FROM LEFT, GOVERNOR EMMANUEL UDUAGHAN, FORMER US AMBASSADOR TO NIGERIA, WALTER CARRINGTON AND WIFE, DR. ARESE CARRINGTON DURING THE LAUNCHING OF DELTA DIASPORA DIRECT (D3) AT THE UNITED NATIONS PLAZA IN NEW YORK.

Delta State Governor, Dr. Emmanuel Eweta Uduaghan has accused foreign countries and staffers of oil companies operating in the Niger Delta area of aiding criminals’ involvement in oil bunkering in the region.
This is even as former United States Ambassador to Nigeria, Ambassador Walter Carrington traces the Niger Delta problems to what he described as the failure of successive governments to use fair portion of the wealth it derive from the region to develop the area.
Governor Uduaghan and Ambassador Carrington spoke in New York at the formal launching of the Delta Diaspora Direct, D3, an initiative of the Delta State Government geared towards involving Deltans in Diaspora in the development of the state.
Governor Uduaghan said that the crisis in Niger Delta is being sustained and fanned by funds realized from foreigners who patronize illegally bunkered oil from the region.
According to the Governor all the illegal arms being used by criminals in the region are foreign made, supplied by foreign collaborators of the criminals in Niger Delta.
“The guns in the Niger Delta are not produced in Nigeria, they are produced abroad.”
He charged on the international community and other relevant bodies to investigate the destination of all bunkered crude oil from the Niger Delta region as a first step to ending oil bunkering and by extension the crisis in the region.
Governor Uduaghan also urged the National Assembly to consider the aspect of the Petroleum Bill which would provide royalties to host communities of oil companies.
According to him “if the royalties are paid and the communities are also part of the oil companies, the crisis in the area would be very minimal if not eliminated.”
The Governor however promised to leave a legacy where all the different ethnic groups are united for the common goal of an accelerated and meaningful development of Delta State where ethnic distrust is reduced to the minimum.
However, former U.S Ambassador to Nigeria, Ambassador Carrington blamed the dearth of basic infrastructure in the Niger Delta on the failure of successive governments.
Carrington particularly took a swipe on the military for bastardising the concept of true federalism in Nigeria.
“It would seem to me clear that the underlying source of discontent in the region is the failure of successive national governments to use a fair portion of the wealth it extracts to benefit the area which produces it.”
He added “the current crisis whose origins which can be traced back to the failings of a federal system to deal with the marginalization which so many citizens of the oil producing region feel.”