The Edo State government has said that it is strengthening its partnership with the European Union to sustain the gains recorded by the current administration in human capacity development, job creation, and tackling illegal migration, among others.
The state Governor, Mr Godwin Obaseki, said this recently when he hosted the European Union Ambassador to Nigeria and the Economic Community of West African States, Ms Samuela Isopi, who was on a courtesy visit to the government house, Benin City.
Obaseki said the state was consolidating ties with the EU and exploring new areas of investments in the culture and tourism, education, tech and other sectors of the state’s economy.
He said, “We have had a very good and strong relationship with the EU since we got into office in 2016. They have been very supportive of our efforts at stemming the tide of irregular migration and human trafficking from Edo. For the successes and achievements we have made in the area of human trafficking and irregular migration, the EU has been a strong ally.
“They have worked very closely with us and their partner, the International Organisation for Migration, in ensuring they are able to roll out programmes to support victims of trafficking and returnees and help them with resettlement, job opportunities and making sure they are properly integrated into our society”
Obaseki further said that the state was looking for a window for regular migration and collaboration with EU in training the youth.
“We are now looking at windows for regular migration. How we can collaborate with the EU to create institutions to train our young people, certify and equip them so that they can be properly engaged and employed in Europe”
The governor expressed hope that the EU would assist the state in achieving its dream of being the culture hub of the subcontinent.
Earlier, the EU Ambassador hailed the governor’s developmental strides across all sectors of the state’s economy noting that Edo was one of the first states she was visiting since her arrival into Nigeria.
She said, “Edo State, a few years ago, was the state from where 50 per cent of the illegal migrants in Europe came from and now this percentage is lower than 10 per cent. All thanks to the leadership of the state government and strong partnership with the European Union and other partners. We have a very strong partnership with your state government on migration and mobility, both on supporting the resettling of returnees from Libya and creating the right conditions for the youth of the state to find opportunities here – education opportunities, job opportunities, among others. We are positively impressed by the results that have been achieved and want to reassure His Excellency that we will continue to work together”
