The Federal Government has been urged to invest in energy expansion and agricultural growth to drive sustainable and economic development in the country.
The managing partner, Deutsche Partners Holding (DPH), an independently-owned financial services firm specializing in Investment Banking, Asset Management, Securities and Trustees, Dr Onuoha Nnachi, gave the advice during a press conference which served as a precursor to the 3rd Infrastructure Dialogue which will hold in Abuja on Thursday, April 10, 2025 at the Yar’Adua Centre, Abuja.
According to Dr Nnachi, the Dialogue with the theme: “Financing Sustainable Energy and Agricultural Infrastructure for Economic Development” will discuss the issue of dearth of infrastructure aimed at propelling Nigeria’s economic development.
He added that the Dialogue which will attract stakeholders and policy makers from the private and public sector will emphasise on manpower development, knowledge transfer system and infrastructural entrepreneurship scheme and would be a long term advantage for the country in the area of employment opportunities, agricultural infrastructure and clean energy.
“If you don’t discuss anything, you cannot get resolutions and the easiest way to get a resolution is to establish a conversation. And as you hold the conversation, you begin to see vibrating thoughts, arguments, school of thoughts that you never imagined will begin to fall into place. We have done this the first time, the second time and this is the third time. We are here to bring up something that can turn up and be the pathway for Nigeria’s economic development.
“How can we finance energy infrastructure and agricultural infrastructure and that brings us to the theme of the Infrastructure Dialogue with the theme “Financing Sustainable Energy and Agricultural Infrastructure for Economic Development” and we say it’s a pathway to national recovery. If you can finance agriculture properly, if you can finance energy properly, we are saying leading to this conversation, is the only pathway to economic recovery for Nigeria.
“In the Dialogue, we are going to have two panel sessions; one on energy, one on agriculture. We want to ask some evolving questions. We want to compare ourselves with other nations in the world even Third World countries, developing countries nations and we tell ourselves the truth. So, we are looking at policy makers, investors and all other participants in the ecosystem to be there.
“We are taking this conversation to the deepest part and we’re looking at how we can collaborate with the rest of the world because we cannot operate in isolation. Agriculture is the only sector in the world that within a year you can afford to create five million employment and these are meaningful and sustainable employment and this can only come through when you have enough energy. And that is why we say at the Dialogue that “better infrastructure, better Nigeria” . The only way to make this country work is to work on this pathway.
“The central issue in focus lies at the heart of our collective future: financing sustainable energy and agricultural infrastructure as a cornerstone for economic development, is not just a conversation. It’s in essence, a call to action, a blueprint for progress, and a commitment to the prosperity of our communities, our nations and our planet,” Dr Nnachi said.
He added, “We live in a time of unprecedented opportunity and challenge. The global demand for energy is rising, yet we must meet it in ways that preserve our environment for future generations. At the same time, agriculture, which is essentially the backbone of our economies worldwide faces pressures from climate change population growth and the need for greater efficiency. These are not separate issues; they are deeply interconnected.
“Sustainable energy powers modern agriculture and thriving agriculture fuels economic stability. Together, they form a vital cycle of that can lift societies out of poverty, create jobs and drive innovation. We must be clear in our conversation. Achieving sustainable energy and agricultural infrastructure development requires investment. It requires bold, strategic financing that bridges the gap between ambition and action. They are collaboration, innovation and impact.
“At the end of the Dialogue, we’ll look at how we can put on ground a knowledge transfer system, infrastructure entrepreneurship scheme where various aspect of infrastructure, we begin to build skill acquisition, we begin to get people and train them, train the trainees.”
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