By Noah Ocheni, Lokoja
The Kogi State Government says it has strengthened its partnership with Chinese firms to accelerate implementation of its Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zone (SAPZ) programme, aimed at boosting food production, job creation and investment.
This was disclosed in a statement by the Commissioner for Information and Communications, Kingsley Fanwo, who said the initiative is designed to enhance agricultural processing capacity and position the state as a key agro-industrial hub in Nigeria. According to the statement, Kogi has entered into a cooperation agreement with Hezheng Holdings Group and Hezheng Digital Technology Co. Ltd. to support project delivery.
Fanwo said the SAPZ structure includes the Ajaokuta Agro-Industrial Hub, as well as Agricultural Transformation Centres in Anyigba, Alape and Osara, alongside the Zariagi Agro-Air Hub. He added that the programme integrates farmer clusters with plans to develop up to 150,000 hectares of farmland per zone, supported by infrastructure such as warehousing, cold chain logistics, power supply and agro-export systems.
A state delegation, led by Auditor-General and Project Investment Adviser Yakubu Okala, visited Hezheng facilities in China to understudy industrial park management and agricultural technology systems. The government said technical and commercial processes are ongoing ahead of project mobilisation, including plans to establish coordination offices in China, Kogi and Abuja.
