Hyacinth Alia, governor of Benue, says the state has extensive investment opportunities in the agricultural sector for foreign investors to put their funds.

Alia spoke on Saturday when he received Baroness Sandip Verma, former United Kingdom (UK) minister of energy and climate change, at the government house in Markurdi, Benue capital.

The governor said the works of the former minister in the area of development in Nigeria and Africa are recognised, adding that he is confident Benue will benefit from her contributions.

“In as much as you have heard about Benue, we have heard so much about you and your goodwill. We know about your tall profile and the good intentions you have for Nigeria and the entire Africa. I am convinced that you are in the right place,” Alia said.


“We are the food basket of the nation, and there are a number of things we do here in the state. In the past, we lost out on a number of opportunities.

“But for the work we are doing as a government, we want to bring to bear, the huge opportunities on all of us as a people and as a state.”

While speaking, Verma, who is also a member of the House of Lords in the UK, expressed appreciation to the governor for the invitation.


The former UK minister added that she considers herself a Nigerian and is willing to support the country’s programme to empower women.

OkpaNsukkaisBae:
Herdsmen go just dey one corner dey look una.

OkpaNsukkaisBae:
Herdsmen go just dey one corner dey look una.

triple996:
Benue is a very backward state no offense. Especially after several horrible governors ........Susuan, Ortom etc

triple996:
Benue is a very backward state no offense. Especially after several horrible governors ........Susuan, Ortom etc

Emeskhalifa:
I was really hoping this man will somehow be better than the past governors but sighhhhh

You want investors to come to your state, have you been able to tackle the insecurity in your state sir?

fuckJones:
do you normally take alomo bitters or you are bitter by nature?

realoscar84:
Aside security issue. No matter the investment opportunities in Benue, no right thinking entrepreneurs will invest in that state if he/she carry out due diligence. If you go there with your money, you will surely shed premium tears. No business can flourish in the midst of criminal elements. The people of benue especially the tivs are some of the most heartless and criminally minded people I've ever come across. Tufiakwa. Idomas are fair but you see tivs and to lesser level the igede, chai they carry my eyes see shege. How can you be begging people in the name of God that you are losing money because of their wicked demands and that pleading hardened their heart more. Tivs leaders need to work on their peoples mentality. But the old and the youths are the same. Always scheming to betray or defraud you. I'm speaking from experience I had in asukunya in tarka LG and Oju.

OkpaNsukkaisBae:
Herdsmen go just dey one corner dey look una.

fuckJones:


do you normally take alomo bitters or you are bitter by nature?

God1000:
please tell us your state

realoscar84:
Aside security issue. No matter the investment opportunities in Benue, no right thinking entrepreneurs will invest in that state if he/she carry out due diligence. If you go there with your money, you will surely shed premium tears. No business can flourish in the midst of criminal elements. The people of benue especially the tivs are some of the most heartless and criminally minded people I've ever come across. Tufiakwa. Idomas are fair but you see tivs and to lesser level the igede, chai they carry my eyes see shege. How can you be begging people in the name of God that you are losing money because of their wicked demands and that pleading hardened their heart more. Tivs leaders need to work on their peoples mentality. But the old and the youths are the same. Always scheming to betray or defraud you. I'm speaking from experience I had in asukunya in tarka LG and Oju.

realoscar84:
I was dealing on bamboo trees for building projects in abuja. What i do is to go to the villages where matured bamboo abound, then buy them from the land/farm owners. Then i will hire the locals to do the cutting and dressings, engage others to do the haul out from the bush to the nearest road where trucks can come to convey them to abuja. Here is where the trouble start. There are alot of these matured bamboo in tivs land that even the farmers or land owners wants you to come and cut them because aside using few ones to roof their huts, its of lesser or no value to them. I was warned by experienced people in the business never to go to tiv land to do business but when i saw the matured and very straight bamboo that sre aboud in tiv land, i was tempted. I didn't realize the reason they have them like forest was because people hardly come to do business with them because of their wickedness. I did alot of successful trips to idoma side of benue because idomas aren't overly greedy like the tivs. Once you pay the owner and you have an agreement with the cutters and hawlers, they will do ur work for you but just make sure you give the community and the youths association their rightful stipend and you are good to go. Even after succesfully reaching your targeted figures because you need a minimum of 2,500 pieces of bamboo to makes a truck, getting a trailer to go load the stuff is much easier because drivers/truck owners have nothing to fear going to idoma land. When the truck arrive, usually you neec experienced loaders like 2 guys who know how to arrange it very well to ensure the truck load the required numbers, failure to do that mean loss because bamboos are quite difficult to arrange well and since agreement about charter fee for the truck which can be up to a million naira has been agreed, it behoves on you to ensure it loaded the required number atleast short of endangering the safety of the truck. You will still need to hire some locals like 4/6 guys to help with the loading by lifting the bamboos for the experienced 2 loader who stay up the truck and be arranging. Most often you negotiate with the 2 team differently. In idoma land I hardly have issue with them throughout the entire process because areas of disagreement can be easily ironed out in a fairly and reasonable manner without any threat of violence. Thats that for the idomas but go to tiv land and you will see hell. You will over pay for everything because they are always threatening you with violence majorly because you don't speak their language and they also feel you came with bags full of money to come and extract diamond from their land. First of all, they dont respect agreement. Beginning from the land/bamboo owners, some cutters can even take ur money and dissappear without doing the job. To cut the story short, when you have finally done with cutting, hawling out after losing so much money by paying over the top which makes the business largely unprofitable anymore, getting a trailer to go tiv land is harder than camel going through the eye of a needle. Most truck dont go there for load because their demands are too much and unreasonable. Once you finally get a truck which you pay over the top, then as soon as the truck arrive, the whole place turn a market place where different groups came with the purpose of extorting you. Even the local govt council revenue agents aren't exempted. You go pay money taya. then there come the most unreasonable demand I've ever seen. I was caution not to engage any so called experienced loaders from outside the community. When they later allowed me, it doesnt affect their loading charges. Once they name theur price for loading, its unnegotiable. Once you negotiate
it will bring problem. One even told me to just give just pay them what they demanded while i go look for other people to come and load the goods
any move to call their bluff, they will threaten to keep ur truck here even if its up to a year till i acede to their request. I was the one that went to makurdi to hire the truck myself but the local truck charters still demanded for charter fee and i was compelled to pay. I begged like ive never done in my life. At a point i started shedding tears out of frustration but they no send my papa. The more you beg in the name of God, the more their mind got hardened. after all the suffering i ended up losing chunk of my business capital which was largely borrowed. I vow never to go to that land for business.

Just a quick one, before i ventured into biz, i was a manager of water factory. Guess who set me up for sack? It was 2 tivs guys i employed as one of the distribution drivers and conductor. My crime?, i wouldnt let them steal much. Most tivs are something else. There are still good ones among them though.
.

YoshihideSuga:


Thorough explanation!

Thank you for your reply. I never knew things could be like this. This information came at the right time. Once again, thank you so much.