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Last month in Algiers, the state I govern, Cross River, signed an agreement with the African Export-Import Bank to host the 2026 African Sub-Sovereign Governments Network Investment Conference. The event is intended to forge the cooperation needed to scale up trade and investment across African cities and regions.
As Governor, it is an honour to be hosting an array of investors, financiers, and key stakeholders driving Africa’s transformation. I may be biased – don’t we all think our child is the most wonderful? – but I truly believe that Cross River is one of Africa’s hidden jewels. Indeed, few places can match the beauty and diversity of Cross River — nestled in the rainforests of West Africa, bordered by the boundless blue of the Atlantic Ocean and the “Africa in miniature” that is the Central African nation of Cameroon. Ecological, linguistic, and culinary richness are just three of Cross River’s many endowments, alongside a complex history shaped by the slave trade and colonial influence.
Imposing mountains, ancient kingdoms, vast plantations and forests, iconic waterfalls, Africa’s largest collection of monoliths, West Africa’s biggest street carnival, and the last remaining drill monkeys in Nigeria — this is the Cross River we know and want to share with the world.
Since May 2023, I have had the privilege of leading this state of four and a half million people, carrying their hopes and aspirations for a present and future worthy of its immense potential. Despite the natural beauty of our state, I have come to learn that our greatest asset is our people – hardworking, enterprising, creative, and hospitable. That is why the agenda under my administration is a People First one: a commitment to developing human capital through strategic investments in education, health security, food security, and cultural empowerment.
We have recently established a University of Education and Entrepreneurship and a College of Agriculture to train the next generation of talent. In healthcare, a quiet revolution is underway, especially in primary health care. Alongside solar power, clean water, modern equipment, and renovated facilities, we are digitising our health systems. Our goal is to overhaul, in the first phase, one primary health care centre in each of the 196 ‘wards’ across the state, creating a network of model centres that will chart the future of healthcare not just in the state but across Nigeria.
Our agricultural vision is rooted in a seven-year strategic plan to develop cocoa, coffee, and oil palm — three cash crops in which we have a comparative advantage. In addition to reclaiming more than 22,000 hectares of moribund rubber estates across the state, we have also just sealed a partnership with a Nigerian agribusiness, JR Farms, to cultivate 30 million robusta coffee seedlings, supporting 11,000 farmers.
In April, we became the second Nigerian state to break ground on a Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zone, under a half-a-billion-dollar programme financed by the African Development Bank, the Government of Nigeria, and a number of development partners. The new zone will occupy 130 hectares of prime agricultural land in Adiabo, transforming primary produce into processed goods for local consumption and export.
Exports will move primarily through a new deep seaport in Bakassi, on which we intend to break ground very soon. Our collaboration with the Nigerian Navy recently delivered navigational charts and a technical report — a vital milestone. Bakassi Deep Sea Port, the project’s special-purpose vehicle, a PPP that is 80% private sector and 20% state-owned, is now fundraising, with strong commitments already from Afreximbank.
With the deep-sea port, an existing river port, an international airport, a home-grown airline, a free trade zone, a 700km concrete coastal highway linking us to Lagos, and the new 450km Trans-Sahara superhighway running northwards to Abuja, Nigeria’s capital, it’s easy to see why I am calling our state Africa’s best-kept secret — but one we want to share with the world.
We know that building trust is key to attracting investors. And central to this is the rule of law. Strong governance underpins our transformation. Our commitment to the rule of law has earned us recognition by the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID), a respected media think-tank, as the “safest state for journalists” in Nigeria. Here, freedom of expression and association are not slogans but a lived reality.
In December, we will host a grand 20th edition of the Calabar Carnival — West Africa’s unmatched cultural showcase. Preparations are already underway for the tens of thousands who will converge to close the year in style amidst unparalleled warmth and hospitality. As we work hard to put the Carnival on the global map, to compete with the world’s biggest and best, we are equally confident that, in the years to come, visitors and investors will come to discover our landscapes, taste our coffee and chocolate, and invest in the technology and talent of our youth.
It is with this in mind that we will host next year’s investment conference. From agribusiness to ecotourism, infrastructure to logistics, the blue economy to the digital economy, the opportunities are immense and, I believe, the rewards guaranteed. As the old African adage goes, the best time to plant a tree was yesteryear. The next best time is now. And now is the time we share our secret with the rest of the world.
