The Director General of the Nigeria-China Strategic Partnership (NCSP), Mr. Joseph Tegbe, on Thursday visited the Ogun-Guangdong Free Trade Zone (OGFTZ) to evaluate its operations and deepen investment collaboration between Nigeria and China.
Welcomed by the zone’s chairman, Dr. Hafsat Oduwole-Balewa, Tegbe toured the facilities and held strategic discussions aimed at strengthening bilateral economic ties under the NCSP framework.
“When I assumed leadership, we had fewer than 40 companies. Today, there are 173 enterprises operating within the zone,” Dr. Oduwole-Balewa stated.
She emphasized the zone’s potential to accelerate Nigeria’s industrialization through technology transfer, export growth, and the attraction of green and advanced manufacturing investments.
Tegbe hailed the OGFTZ as a benchmark for industrial zones across the country:
“This zone has been extremely successful in attracting Chinese investors. We aim to use it as a national showcase to attract more bilateral investment and promote re-industrialization in Nigeria,” he said.
He noted that the Ogun-Guangdong FTZ currently hosts 173 companies, directly employing over 10,000 Nigerians and indirectly supporting an additional 25,000 jobs. The zone also reportedly generates over 300 megawatts of electricity for its operations.
The Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority (NEPZA) was also represented, with Mr. Steven Makanjuola, its Administrative Manager at OGFTZ, praising Dr. Oduwole-Balewa’s transformative leadership.
Other key attendees included Mr. Kevin Liu, Deputy GM of China-Africa Investment FZC, along with customs and immigration officials and Chinese business representatives operating in the zone.
The visit reinforces Ogun-Guangdong FTZ’s role as a strategic node in Nigeria-China cooperation, especially in aligning industrial policy with economic diversification goals and youth capacity development.
