January 30, (THEWILL) – Ondo is a state in southwestern Nigeria created in February 1976. Its capital and commercial centre is Akure. The state lies between longitudes 4″30″ and 6″ East of the Greenwich Meridian, 5″45″ and 8″ 15″ North of the Equator. This means that it lies entirely in the tropics. It is bounded in the North by Ekiti and Kogi States; in the East by Edo State; in the West by Oyo and Ogun States and in the South by the Atlantic Ocean.
Agriculture is the mainstay of Ondo’s economy; the major produce include cotton and tobacco from the North, cocoa from the central part, while rubber and timber (teak and hardwoods) come from the South and East. Palm oil and kernels are cultivated for export throughout the state. Ondo is Nigeria’s chief cocoa-producing state.
The people are mostly farmers, fishermen and traders. Some of the indigenes also engage in wood works, such as furniture making sand crafts.
Ondo is one of Nigeria’s oil-producing states and it has the second largest bitumen deposits in the world. It also has one of the largest natural gas deposits globally.
The state has in commercial quantities agricultural produce such as maize, yam, plantain, kola nut, coffee, coconut, vegetables, timber, banana, rice, cassava, fish and piggery. Being a leading producer of cocoa of about 300,000 tons per session, which amounts to 40 per cent of national production, it has seven cocoa processing and chocolate factories geared towards maximising the product to derive more and ensure the people pay less for the end product.
In a bid to transform the state to an industrialised one, the Ore Industrial Park (OIP) and Ondo Liyin Hub is home to Investors, both local and foreign, taking advantage of the opportunities available.
The Ondo coastline is occupied by Ilaje fishing communities considered to be one of the most important on the west coast. It has a rich biodiversity that contains various groups of fish, shellfish (shrimps, crabs, lobster, gastropods and cephalopods). The state has the longest coastline in West Africa. it has a free trade zone (Olokonla free trade zone) that shares a boundary with Ogun state. The state has plastic companies manufacturing plastics, and plastic furniture. Taking advantage of the abundance of timber in the state the people also produce wooden doors and furniture.
Mineral Resources
Ondo produces 12 per cent of Nigeria’s total output of oil and gas; other mineral resources found in the state are quartz sand, clay, granite, limestone talc, kaolin, coal, columbite, rock, tin, bitumen (the second largest deposit in the world). It is blessed with many rivers, ocean fronts, and the longest coastline in Nigeria.
Tourism Sites
Idanre Hills, known as Oke Idanre in Yoruba, with over 660 steps, is one of the most popular tourist sites in the state, it is Situated 3,000 feet above sea level. Although generally a hilly town, the concentration of hills at the site makes it more prominent, hence an attraction site. Other places include the Owa’s Palace, Shrines, Old Court, Belfry, Agboogun footprint, Thunder water (Omi Aopara), and burial mounds. The site is pretty cool with beautiful surroundings and courteous reception. On October 8, 2007, the Idanre Hill became a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Ebomi Lake, often regarded as bottomless because the depth is unknown, is a 1.5km long expanse of water, located at Ipesi-Akoko, along the north-eastern boundaries of Ondo State.
The Olowo Of Owo Palace is the largest in Yoruba land, covering a 99 hectare piece of land to the west of the town. There are over 100 ancient courtyards of which 17 are still intact.
Deji Of Akure’s Palace is where the traditional ruler offers visitors the opportunity to learn about the history, values and culture of Akure people. Many historical monuments can also be found in the palace.
Igbokoda Waterfront is one of the longest bodies of water in Nigeria. It is located about 142km from Akure and has a fishing terminal. The water offers a good site for recreational activities such as swimming, fishing, among others.
Oke Maria Hills, located at Oba Akoko, has been in existence since the early 1900s. Oke Maria, (Mary’s Hill) is home to a shrine dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, after an apparition of hers was allegedly seen. Climbing up the hill to the Oke Maria apparition site has become a pilgrimage. It is a site of prayer for Catholics and also non-Catholics.
The Cave of Ashes, located in Isharun, a village situated about 24 kilometers (twenty-minutes drive) from Akure, was naturally formed by the aesthetic cluster of massive granite boulders (ho Eleeru) or the Cave of Ashes. It dates back as early as 920BC. The Cave of Ashes is referred to as the home of the oldest pre-historic man in West Africa.
Owo Museum, founded in 1968, is home to many monuments and artifacts. Because of its proximity to Ile-Ife and Benin City, two cities renowned for their artistic and cultural legacies, the museum was built to preserve the antiquities that were formerly stored in the Olowo’s palace. From there, one can learn about the people of Owo and their history.
Igbo Olodumare (meaning ‘Forest of the Almighty’) is a thick evergreen forest preserved for its beautiful and fascinating nature situated in Oke-Igbo near Ile-Oluji.
Ondo is also pursuing agriculture with huge passion. It recently distributed agricultural inputs and machinery to over 1,000 farmers to boost food production and raw materials for industries.
The Ondo State Government in making good its promise to achieve food sufficiency distributed agricultural inputs and machinery to over 1,000 farmers across the state. The state governor, Rotimi Akeredolu, distributed the items in Akure during the presentation of certificates of registration to 142 trained youths from three cooperative groups. Irrigation equipment to secondary schools were also distributed by the governor. He noted that the initiative is an all-inclusive exercise as anybody can invest in agriculture, “no matter the job you are doing, be you government worker or so, you can farm, the constitution allows it.” Meanwhile farmers are reported to be planning to reactivate and have their own Microfinance bank to ensure unhindered access to funds.
FACT-FILE
LGA: 18
Land Area: 6,000sqmi
Registered businesses: 125
Public primary schools: 1,170 circa
Public secondary schools: 375 circa
University (7): Federal – 1, state – 3, private – 3
Polytechnic (6): Federal – 2, state – 1, private – 3
College of Education (2): State – 1, private – 1
College of Agriculture: Federal -1
Nursing School/Health Technology (3): Federal – 1, State – 1, Private – 1
Technical School (5): Federal – 1, state – 3, private – 1
Total revenue: N71,50bn @ 2020
Total tax: N21,29bn @ 2020
IGR: N24,84bn @ 2020 (34.75% of total revenue)
FAAC: N45,65bn @ 2020 (62.25% of total revenue)
Domestic Debt: N153,49bn @ 2020
External Debt: $87.43m @ 2020
Unemployment rate: 28.0% @ 2020
Airport: 1.
Ondo Harps on Industrialisation, Economic Transformation
Ondo State Government has said it will continue to partner with the private sector to accelerate economic transformation through industrialisation. Governor Rotimi Akeredolu revealed that the state has the 13th largest economy in Nigeria, dominated by oil and gas and agriculture which account for over 80 per cent of its Gross Domestic Product.
The government reeled out its profile while it beckoned on investors as it stressed that the state is taking advantage of the longest coastline in its domain to establish a Deep Sea Port-Port of Ondo. In a deliberate effort to promote the economy of the state, Ondo Investment Promotion Agency (ONDIPA) was created as the one-stop hub for facilitating investment deals and trade activities.
Akeredolu stated that through the public-private partnership model, Ondo seeks to produce bitumen locally to boost industrialisation and create more value for its economy. To facilitate socio-economic activities, the government fully supports the Ore Industrial Park, which will serve as one of the leading hubs in the nation. The state established the ‘Red Gold Initiative,’ in the Agro-sector aimed at transforming the oil palm sector, with 6,000 hectares of land that has already been dedicated to the new plan. The state also claimed to be among the largest producers/suppliers of tomatoes to Lagos state.
and Water Transport
The state government has listed the following for execution as part of the industrialisation and economic development plan it has put in place:
Resuscitating of Okitipupa Oil Palm through a PPP model
Developing the Sunshine Egg Factory
Revitalising Oluwa Glass Company
Revamping of Efon Ceramics Limited
Driving the Cassava-to-Ethanol project
In the area of aviation, Akure Aiport is considered by the state to be the fastest growing in the South West after Lagos.
Ondo state had commissioned a cocoa processing industry established by Johnvents Industries Limited, a wholly indigenous agro-business facility in Akure, bringing the number of similar plants to seven. The development is in line with the government’s plan to boost agriculture, generate revenue and create employment.
The Group Managing Director, CapitalSage Holdings, the parent company of Johnvents Industries Limited, Mr John Alamu, said the firm will generate a lot of direct and indirect jobs for the people of the state. He said, “It is an automated processing plant, which means that the factory will operate at 98 per cent operational efficiency at full blast. With a capacity to crush over 15,000 metric tonnes of cocoa beans annually, this is one of the biggest cocoa-processing factories in Nigeria.
“We have built into this factory a solid-fired boiler that generates steam and 33KVA electricity supply to reduce overhead costs by over 40 per cent, while also upgrading the factory from 14 pots to 16 pots to improve the efficiency of fat extraction and better processing yield.”
Akeredolu said, “Over two million of improved cocoa seedlings have been made available to farmers in the state free of charge.
The Cocoa Revolution and Management Agency is doing well.
“We are also working on 2,000 hectares of land for an improved cocoa farm for young farmers. Many youths will be working.”
According to Alamu, the factory is well-positioned to positively impact the economy of Ondo State, in particular, and Nigeria as a whole, through its immense contribution to job creation.
“It is projected that this factory will create around 300 direct jobs and over 17,000 indirect jobs,” Alamu added.
He described the company as a wholly indigenous agro-business incorporated to drive sustainable growth across the entire agricultural value chain.
“We are confident that this project will enrich and bolster the agricultural value chain in Ondo State and Nigeria by making sure that the economic benefits of producing cocoa do not stop at exporting raw cocoa beans – a trend that has robbed us of the opportunity to milk out as much value as possible from being the producers,” he said.
The Deji of Akure Kingdom, Oba Aladetoyinbo Aladelusi, in response to the laudable development said, the entire Akure land was delighted with the establishment of the company in his domain.
Challenging Factors: Insecurity, excesses of revenue officials, poor electricity supply, deplorable road network.
About the Author
Sam Diala is a Bloomberg Certified Financial Journalist with over a decade of experience in reporting Business and Economy. He is Business Editor at THEWILL Newspaper, and believes that work, not wishes, creates wealth.
