The Edo State Government is seeking investment from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to expand agricultural production, livestock development and agro-processing as it moves to position agriculture as a major driver of jobs and economic growth.
The state government opened discussions with the UAE during a meeting between its delegation and the UAE Ambassador to Nigeria, Salem Saeed Al Shamsi, at the UAE Embassy in Abuja on Monday.
The delegation, led by the Commissioner for Livestock Development, Ohimai Ehijimetor, included the Special Adviser to the Governor on Livestock Development, Roland Igbadumhe; Senior Special Assistant on Agriculture and Food Security, Emmanuel Sule; and Project Coordinator of the Edo State Livestock Productivity and Resilience Support Project, Betsy Ikpikhumi.
Ehijimetor said the engagement was aimed at attracting capital, technology and expertise into Edo’s agricultural value chains, noting that the state was looking beyond conventional funding sources to develop agriculture as a commercially viable sector.
He said Edo had investment opportunities across oil palm, cocoa, pineapple, maize and cassava, as well as cattle, goat, poultry and fish production.
“Governor Monday Okpebholo is very clear about what he wants to achieve in Edo State. We are looking at agriculture not merely as a means of feeding our people, but as a major economic sector capable of creating jobs, attracting investment and generating wealth for the state,” he said.
The commissioner said the government was particularly interested in investors capable of supporting large-scale production, livestock development, processing and other stages of the agricultural value chain.
He said the state wanted to move beyond the production and export of raw commodities by encouraging processing and value addition within Edo.
“We are interested in the entire value chain. It is not enough to produce cocoa, cassava, maize or livestock and then export them as raw commodities. We want to see processing, value addition and industrial activities take place in Edo State,” he said.
The delegation also used the meeting to present the forthcoming Edo International Agricultural and Livestock Investment Summit, scheduled for December in Abuja, to the ambassador.
Ehijimetor said the summit would bring together investors, development institutions, agribusinesses, technology providers and policymakers to explore investment opportunities across the state’s agricultural value chains.
He said the engagement with the UAE was significant given the country’s experience in food security, agricultural technology, livestock development and international investment.
The commissioner also cited the Nigeria-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, signed in January 2026, as an opportunity to deepen commercial ties and attract UAE-based investors to Edo.
Al Shamsi commended the state government’s initiative and pledged the cooperation of the UAE Embassy towards the successful hosting of the December summit.
The ambassador also indicated the embassy’s readiness to support the mobilisation of UAE-based investors and business groups to participate in the event.
Ehijimetor said the state government would sustain engagements with diplomatic missions, development partners and private investors ahead of the summit as part of efforts to place Edo’s agricultural investment opportunities before international investors.
“We are taking Edo’s investment opportunities to the world. We want investors to see Edo as a place where they can come, invest, produce, process and make sustainable returns,” he said.
The visit ended with the presentation of an official gift from Governor Okpebholo to Al Shamsi as a gesture of goodwill.
