Osun Attracted Zero Foreign Investment in 2023 By Adebayo Adedeji

 

Osun State under the administration of Senator Ademola Adeleke was ignored by foreign investors in 2023 as the state attracted no foreign direct investment in the year, a document published by the National Bureau of Statistics ( NBS) has revealed.

This disappointing outing is a manifestation of deep disgust for the mediocre leadership of Governor Adeleke by investors, in sharp contrast to the 2021 experience when the state attracted $26.9million when ex-Governor Adegboyega Oyetola was at the helm of affairs in the state.

In 2017, before the inauguration of the Oyetola government, the Capital Investment to the state was put at zero, but with the business-enabling  reforms and sound regulatory framework for private investment that took place within two years of Oyetola in office, the government was able to attract quality investment to the state that launched her as third best foreign investment destination in Nigeria, after Lagos and Abuja.

The poor investment status of Osun State in 2023 has been attributed majorly to the lack of relevant business experience, uninspiring personal drive and lackadaisical approach to governance of Governor Adeleke and members of his team.

However, while Osun state fell terribly in the investment destination ranking in 2023, analysts have painted more gloomy expectation for the state in 2024, stating that serious foreign investors would likely avoid the state because of the government's crude and insane attitude to the rule of law.

According to them, no investor wants to sink his or her money in a state where contract disputes are impossible to be sorted legally because there are no courts to run to as they have been shut based on the whims and caprices of the state actors.

Since November 2022, courts in Osun State have been under lock and key owing to a politically motivated industrial action instituted by the state's judiciary workers.

Lagos State, with $2.50billion FDI and FCT with $1.17billion, top the list of states that attracted the most foreign direct investments in 2023. Other states that attracted foreign investments in 2023 are Abia $150.09 million, Akwa Ibom $39.13 million, Ogun $27.09 million, and Rivers $6 million. Adamawa attracted $4.5 million, Anambra $4 million, Niger $1.50 million, Ondo $200,000 and Ekiti $51,000.