December 12, 2024
By Adedoja Adesoji
The founder of Afe Babalola University Ado-Ekiti (ABUAD), Afe Babalola, has expressed disappointment over the Federal Government’s refusal to issue a free trade zone certificate to his university.
Babalola, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, believes that the certificate would have enabled foreign companies to establish businesses in the university’s industrial park, thereby boosting Nigeria’s economy.
The industrial park, located in Ado-Ekiti, has over 132 units, which Babalola claims is enough to turn Nigeria’s economy around if well utilized. He stressed that a free trade zone would facilitate international trade and industrial activities, contributing to the country’s economic growth.
Babalola wondered why China, once a poor country, has overtaken Nigeria in economic matters.
He attributed China’s success to its creation of free trade zones, which allowed foreign countries to set up industries and share knowledge.
“In 1999, I traveled to China. At that time, China was a very poor country, but the Chinese people were very wise. They created an area, called free trade zone, which allowed countries like the United States and Germany to set up industries there,” Babalola said.
He lamented that Nigeria’s government has refused to grant ABUAD a free trade zone certificate, despite his applications over the past two years.
This refusal has stalled plans by an American company to commence manufacturing cars in the university’s industrial park.
Babalola emphasized the need for a people-oriented constitution to foster national development.
He believes that Nigeria would be more developed if it still had the regional government system.
The Secretary-General of the China-Nigeria Consortium on Industry and Education, Wendy Wang, commended Babalola for his visionary achievements in education, engineering, and health.
She described ABUAD as the best institution in Nigeria, highlighting its integration of cutting-edge technologies in its curriculum.
The event also featured the presentation of the ‘Chinese Plus Digital Intelligence Education Gold Medal’ to Babalola, in recognition of his commitment to quality and functional education in Nigeria.
