Leadership (Abuja)
Richard Alkali
5 July 2008
Yobe — A two-day economic summit designed to 'chart the way forward' for Yobe State's socio-economic development will be opened in Damaturu, the state capital tomorrow.
Yobe indigenes in the private sector, industry and the academia in collaboration with the state government organized the summit in order to write a 'road map' on how faster and more sustainable socio-economic development can be achieved.
Speaking, one of the organizers of the summit Prof. Musa Alabe said that, "The summit will look at where we are currently and where we hope to be in the future as people of Yobe State. It will look at loopholes in attempts at developing the state: what was done right or wrong and how to build on existing capacities to achieve sustainable development."
According to him, the summit will give specific input on key developmental areas including healthcare delivery, education, water and sanitation, poverty alleviation, the environment and the economy.
Already, experts assigned to nine different social and economic categories, have undertaken extensive studies and research on the immediate and remote factors hampering Yobe's socio-economic development and will offer operational suggestions on the way forward during the summit.
According to Professor Alabe, the experts took nearly one year under-studying the situation and were now in a position to make 'concrete suggestions' on how Yobe's social and economic situation as well as its competitiveness can be enhanced.
A key aspect of the summit, according to Alabe, is the willingness of the private sector to fund the initiative and be part of the drive to make Yobe an economic giant.
"Many of the people in the summit group are working in the private sector; in banking, insurance, and petroleum sector. They all have a commitment to make the initiative a public-private sector one so that they use their resources and influences to make Yobe's economy competitive in the long term", Alabe added.
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