Nigeria Must Draw in Local and Overseas Funds for Progress, Insists Obasanjo

A former head of state, Olusegun Obasanjo, has called for a strong push to bring in money from both home and abroad to help Nigeria grow, during the official opening of a grand new meeting hall in Bauchi State.

He unveiled the Sir Ahmadu Bello International Conference Centre on Tuesday, praising it as a top-notch site that could turn the area into a hotspot for visitors and deal-makers. The building sits on a large plot of 10,000 square metres and can hold up to 3,000 guests at a time. It features five big rooms for running several events side by side, an open-air spot for 2,500 people, a prayer room, solar panels for clean energy, backup power units, and speedy internet links everywhere.

Every bit of stone used in the floors and walls came straight from quarries in Bauchi, and local builders and experts handled the whole job from start to finish. The groundwork began back in March 2021, with help from a visiting governor from a nearby state.

Mr Obasanjo told the crowd of leaders, business owners, community elders, and guests from other countries that the hall would spark more chats, trips, and trade deals. He said the country should make the most of its own riches, pointing out that Nigeria has as much to offer as anywhere else – and often more. “Places that boast about their setups don’t always have twice what we’ve got here,” he added.

The launch kicked off a gathering to talk about ways to pull in cash for new projects. Mr Obasanjo made it clear that pulling together funds from inside the country and from partners overseas is the key to moving forward right now. He promised to join the state governor on trips anywhere needed to win over backers for Bauchi.

The man in charge of the building firm behind the project, Ruben Okoya, called the hall a stunning creation born from smart planning by the local leader. He highlighted how tapping into nearby supplies showed off the area’s hidden gems and proved that trusting home teams can lead to big wins.

Mr Okoya suggested that bosses in the capital should pick Bauchi for big national events, like talks on oil and gas, since it’s a key spot for drilling and now has this fresh setup to host them.