The Borno State Government has intensified efforts to attract private investment into agriculture, livestock processing and manufacturing as part of its ambition to become a major regional economic hub in the Lake Chad Basin.
The government made the appeal during a Private Sector Engagement and Investment Roundtable in Abuja, where it identified agriculture, livestock, renewable energy, housing, manufacturing and regional logistics as priority investment sectors.
Chief Adviser to Governor Babagana Zulum on Sustainable Development, Partnerships and Humanitarian Response, Dr Mairo Mandara, said Borno possessed significant agricultural resources, a large livestock population and a strategic geographical position linking Nigeria with Chad, Cameroon and Niger.
She noted that more than 60 per cent of the state’s population depended on agriculture, identifying rice, cowpeas, groundnuts, onions and vegetables as commodities with considerable investment potential.
Mandara urged investors to establish processing plants, storage facilities, packaging industries and export-oriented businesses rather than concentrating on the production and transportation of raw commodities.
On livestock development, she identified opportunities in animal feed production, dairy processing, meat processing, veterinary services, cold storage and leather industries.
She also highlighted renewable energy, particularly solar power, as an important investment opportunity capable of supporting irrigation, agricultural processing and industrial activities.
Meanwhile, Chief of Staff to Governor Zulum, Dr Babagana Malumbe, said the administration was strengthening the Borno State Investment Promotion Agency and improving business regulations to encourage private-sector participation.
The government also proposed a 90-day framework to convert investment interests into viable projects and actual business commitments.
The initiative represents part of Borno’s broader transition from post-insurgency humanitarian recovery towards sustainable economic development, employment generation and stronger regional trade.
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