….As global leaders endorse Imo’s push for industrial hub
By Innocent Anaba
Owerri took centre stage in Nigeria’s investment calendar last week as top political and business leaders from within and outside Africa gathered for the two-day Imo Economic and Investment Summit. The event, hosted by Governor Hope Uzodimma, drew heavyweight participants including Vice President Kashim Shettima, former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, Africa’s richest man Aliko Dangote, former President of Mauritius Ameenah Gurib-Fakim, and Minister of Finance Wale Edun.
For many of the foreign guests, the summit signalled a rare moment where global attention shifted to the South-East as an emerging economic corridor. The theme was clear: Imo is pitching itself as a new frontier for capital, energy development, manufacturing, technology and regional logistics.
Imo Is Now Engineered for Investment–Uzodimma
Uzodimma used his keynote to present what he called a rebuilt investment foundation anchored on security, infrastructure, power and transparent land administration.
He announced that the state had overcome years of security disruptions through close collaboration with federal authorities, giving investors the predictability required for capital deployment. He listed over 120 completed roads linking the 27 LGAs and neighbouring commercial cities as part of a wider logistics strategy.
A centrepiece of his pitch was the imminent launch of the Light-Up Imo Project, which he said would provide 24-hour electricity beginning with the Owerri metropolis and later the entire state, eliminating the cost burden of self-generation for industries.
On land administration, he highlighted the new Imo Land Information Centre (ILIC) powered by blockchain-backed digital records, allowing global verification of ownership and issuance of Certificates of Occupancy within 24 hours.
Uzodimma also laid out sectoral opportunities—gas utilisation under the Orashi Energy Free Trade Zone, agro-industrial processing led by Adapalm, solid minerals for manufacturing, a fast-growing digital talent pipeline, and plans to expand global connectivity through the Sam Mbakwe International Cargo Airport and the Orashi-Atlantic maritime corridor.
According to him, Imo now offers “certainty, scale and integration”—a combination he described as the state’s new investment equation. “We are engineered for maximum return,” he told the summit, urging investors to take advantage of an unsaturated market and new administrative efficiency.
Imo Has Set a New Tone—Boris Johnson
Former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson drew applause as he dismissed negative global narratives about insecurity in Nigeria, saying his experience in Owerri proved otherwise.
“When I decided to come, some said there may be security concerns. But I came anyway. I feel perfectly safe,” he said.
Johnson praised Imo’s plan for uninterrupted electricity supply, describing it as the backbone of modern industrial growth. He predicted that AI and clean energy would define global competitiveness and commended the state’s attempt to prepare for that future.
“Your focus on electricity is absolutely right,” he said. “The demand for clean, reliable power will be colossal. What you are doing here is forward-thinking.”
Imo is key to Nigeria’s diversification agenda—Shettima
Vice President Kashim Shettima, who represented President Bola Tinubu, positioned Imo as a major pillar in Nigeria’s broader economic diversification drive. He said the state’s emerging strengths—digital innovation, gas processing, agro-industrial value chains and SMEs—fit into the federal government’s strategy for long-term transformation.
He assured that federal institutions, including the Bank of Industry, would continue to expand financing windows for credible private-sector ventures in states demonstrating reform readiness.
“Imo has shown commitment, and we will match that commitment with support,” he said.
Nigeria’s Youth Are Its Most Powerful Investment—Finance Minister
Minister of State for Finance, Doris Uzoma-Anite, placed Nigeria’s demographic strength at the centre of her remarks. She described young Nigerians as “the most powerful investment the nation possesses,” urging both state governments and private capital to build structures that convert youth talent into scalable economic outcomes.
She praised the Imo Government for convening the summit and attracting global attention, noting that the Federal Ministry of Finance “stands solidly behind any state committed to unlocking Nigeria’s economic potential.”
Other voices
Former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and former President of Mauritius Ameenah Gurib-Fakim added international credibility to the summit. Their participation, alongside Aliko Dangote and a cross-section of global investors, signalled rising interest in sub-national opportunities beyond Nigeria’s traditional commercial hubs.
Imo’s Deputy Governor, Chinyere Ekomaru, used her remarks to thank citizens and the diaspora community for the support that made the summit possible. She reaffirmed the administration’s commitment to a peaceful, inclusive and economically vibrant state.
A state seeking to reposition the South-East
The two-day summit provided Imo with a platform to reset perceptions and court global confidence. For many attendees, the message was consistent: the state is betting heavily on energy, digital talent, manufacturing inputs, logistics and improved governance to position itself as the South-East’s next investment hub.
With global leaders endorsing Imo’s pivot and the state projecting readiness for large-scale industrial participation, Owerri ended the summit with renewed investor curiosity—and a clearer sense that Imo intends to compete for capital on a national and continental scale.
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