Group of business professionals under the aegis of Coalition of Business and Professional Association (NICOBPA) has blamed lack of industrial growth and development in Niger state on insecurity, epileptic electricity supply, bad roads and related vices.

Apart from poor electricity supply and insecurity, NICOBPA said it also identified unstable water supply, unfriendly government policies, including multiple taxations, lack of access to credit facilities as hindrances that have kept the state created since 1976 industrially stagnated.

Chairman of the Coalition, Alhaji Mohammed Mukhtar Lawal disclosed this while briefing journalists over the weekend in Minna, pointing out that, despite drawning the attention of the state government nothing much has been done to set the state on the path of industrialisation.

The state government was advised to fix the roads linking the various parts of the state, the Minna-Suleja and Minna-Bida roads as the worst affected, this according to the Coalition have consistently discouraged investors from investing in any part of Niger state.

As part of efforts to attract investors and boost industrialisation of the over 45 year old state, NICOBPA said it is unfortunate that their efforts yielded no desired results of improving the industrial status notwithstanding its proximity to the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.

Though work has commenced on the construction of the roads but are being executed at snail pace, Mukhtar Lawal, insisting that the body language of the state government has shown no serious commitments to attaining desired industrial goals.

Explaining further, Mukhtar Lawal said, “Entrepreneurs cannot wait for eternity for the state government to put right infrastructures hence the preference for places where security is guaranteed and social amenities readily available”.

“Good road networks are critical to the industrial growth and development of any society”, Mukhtar Lawal said, adding that the Coalition had dialogued with the state government on isues of insecurity and got assurances that ‘omething is being done’.

The Coalition however expressed regrets that things have gone from bad to worse since the interface with the state Governor, especially in rural areas. “Nobody will want to invest his resources where there are security uncertainties”.

Mukhtar Lawal who however commended Governor Sani Bello led the administration for recent steps towards checking insecurity especially the ban on the operation of commercial motorcycles within Minn the state capital said ‘we in the Coalition are waiting on the government to avail us of the gains of this policy’.

Flanked by other executives and members of the Coalition, Mukhtar came down hard on the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) for abysmal performance in guaranteeing stable power supply to businesses and homes.

Electricity supply to virtually all parts of the state has dropped to as low as 2 hours daily with some areas left in darkness for over a year, a development he said has made many businesses resort to alternative energy sources which automatically increases their cost of production.

Mukhtar Lawal also alleged that the AEDC has consistently short-changed Nigerlites by their inability to provide pre-paid meters to customers to also enhance their revenue base and also improve the supply of electricity to the consumers.

Efforts to end multiple taxations by Niger state government agencies have also not yielded expected results this according to NICOBPA Chairman has been discouraging most members and intending industrialists from considering setting up industries in Niger state.

According to Lawal, “We met with officials of the Niger State Board of Internal Revenue, made some recommendations, including the need to revisit some of its taxation policies affecting businesses and pleaded for a scale-up action on the implementation of recommended reforms”.