Commissioner Lists Gains Of World Economic Summit

Rivers State Commissioner for Information and Communications, Mrs Ibim Semenitari, says the World Economic Summit holding in Cape Town, South Africa, will expose the state to the world and help to bring more investors that would enhance the Greater Port Harcourt City project.

Mrs Semenitari, who spoke to The Tide in an interview at the Port Harcourt International Airport, Omagwa, said that the Rivers State  Governor,  Rt Hon Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi was the only governor throughout Nigeria, invited to be part of the meeting as well as showcase the state.

According to her, Governor Amaechi was invited to present an address on what he has been doing in the state in terms of development at the summit, while the President of Gabon presented a keynote address and attended by investors and political leaders from all over the world.

The meeting with the theme, “Changing Perception: Looking at Good Prospects for Africa”, the commissioner said, was one of the most strategic fora for investors and political leaders to examine and determine government policies, pointing out that it was a big exposure  of the State to the world, and one of the ways to bring more investors to the state.

“The fact that the state is already on the world map is clear. The fact that Governor  Amaechi was invited  to deliver a paper at the world summit is an indication that in terms of global standing, Rivers State is becoming a destination choice”, she said.

The information and communications boss noted,  “Rivers State is very highly  rated economically, so high that if they are talking about investment in Africa, they are singling out a sub-national speaker to come and  present a talk and this is what Governor Amaechi had gone to make a presentation or focus on what he has so far done in the state. Amaechi is the only governor across the country invited on the panel to showcase what he has done  and that was because of  his performance in governance”

Mrs. Semenitari observed that the summit would also serve as a major opportunity for the state to get partners for the development of the Greater Port Harcourt City as well as other sectors of the state’s economy, pointing out that  Amaechi’s quest to continue to serve the state had been widely recognised, particularly in the African continent.

Shedie Okpara