The simplicity of the Industrial gate and the main boulevard hides the grandeur of the edifice inside the city. The anterior design is intentional. Its ease does not reflect the sophistication of Alaro City, Epe, but the tidiness of a new town that has come to set a pace.
Both gates looked directly to the Lekki-Epe Expressway, with the inscription “Alaro City, Lekki Free Zone”, which became bolder as the media crew of the Eko Hot Blog drove in quietly to the waiting hands of the guards.
Security
The security unit had seen the movement from afar, according to the Head of Safety, Mr. Ambali Adesanya, whose idea of security goes beyond arms and ammunition but science and technology. His idea of security is prevention.
Ambali is a trained security person who had worked at the peak of public service before bringing his years of experience and expertise to the private sector, precisely Alaro City.
To him, security in Alaro City is top-notch, adding, “We are not resting on our oars as we regularly invest in human safety and update the architecture with modern security technology to provide peace for both the animate and inanimate objects in the city.”
He explained that Alaro has a mutual working relationship with the Nigeria Police and other security agencies to protect the lives and properties within the city.
Even though he refused to divulge all the city’s security strategies, Ambali noted that Alaro City is a safe and peaceful haven for people who like to work and play simultaneously.
Even though Alaro City is an ongoing project, the perimeter fence built to protect about 2,000 hectares of dry land with CCTV cameras to monitor the area is a security structure that is uncommon in the urban development sector.
Morgan Oriahi
Who Are Rendeavour And What Is Alaro City?
According to Morgan Oriahi, the Project Director of Rendeavour Group for West Africa, Alaro City is a development of Rendeavour, the largest private city builder in Africa.
Planned on 2000 hectares of land, Alaro City is a mixed-use city with industrial, commercial and residential options of low, medium and high-density options.
It is home to over 60 companies, including world-known brands like Mantrac, BUA, Ariel Foods, the primary therapeutic foods supplier to UNICEF and many others. Alaro City is a joint venture between Rendeavour and Lagos State Government.
In an interview with Eko Hot Blog, Oriahi said ‘’We’re doing this for over five countries in Africa, Nigeria, Ghana, Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambia, and also in Kenya, and we may even add some more.
From innovative infrastructure projects to sustainable development initiatives, Alaro City is committed to creating a thriving community that offers opportunity to all.
So, we’re building a city, not an estate, and it’s called the New Lagos, right, back in this part of the world.”
Strategically located to share location with a future airport and fourth mainland bridge being planned by the Lagos State Government, Oriahi said that Alaro City has a lot of stuff going on, from grade A logistic park of 30,000 square metre facility to bridges and drainage systems.
Alaro City opens from the front to the industrial park to the right, the commercial in the middle and the residential to the left. Separating these three major parks is a Trunk A interlocking road, “The Activation Road”, that divides the industrial from commercial and the central tarred Boulevard of eight lanes that separates the commercial from the residential area.
The boulevard, about 2.5km, will now be extended to 5km as development continues, the Marketing Communication Manager, Ahmad Al-Amin, told Ekohotblog.
He stated that there is high acceptability of Alaro City by businesses in Lagos and beyond.
“We currently have about 73 companies registered here at Alaro City. That signifies the importance of how excellent Alaro City is for businesses, and a lot of businesses in Nigeria as well and also within Lagos see the possibilities.
We are trying to get as many more as possible to come and join the family of Alaro City So that they can enjoy the full benefits.
They can enjoy all the lovely and amazing infrastructure that Alaro City is providing for businesses,” he said.
Alaro City is affordable, adding, “Of course, with all the things and tools and all the infrastructure being put in place here at Alaro City because you have to gauge it based on that, but Alaro City is affordable for businesses.” he said.
Alaro City has been in existence for just five years; within that space of time, it has recorded one of the most significant numbers of businesses that have registered to operate from there among free zones.
“This feat speaks for itself in terms of affordability, and it is more of the fact that the Alaro City comes with free trade zone benefits to all its clients, which include a 50 per cent reduction in their expenses, zero customs duty for exporting and importing, zero corporate income tax, zero expatriate quotas, 100 per cent foreign ownership of business.
Currently, some of the notable businesses present in the area are TY Logistics, the most modern logistic centre in Nigeria located on Activation Road, HMD, the Sana Group, Rosettee, and the concrete production factory.
Craneburg was responsible for constructing the roads.
Al-Amin stated that heavy-duty vehicles or trucks are not allowed on the boulevard. The city only allocates space for light industry assembly plants and factories, such as Rungas, which has begun operations to reduce noise pollution.
Alaro has already built 576 universal homes, with the first resident expected to take ownership in August. By November, the second set of homes will be handed over to the owners.
Additionally, the city offers tenants for homeowners who wish to rent out their property. Alaro also includes a sports complex and plans for hospitals and schools are in development.
Infrastructure In Alaro City And Its Values To The Clients
According to Al-Amin, Alaro not only focuses on creating serene homes and business and industrial environments but also aims to build a lifestyle where everyone in the Alaro family is catered for within the city.
The city has an Independent Power Plant with a 100-megawatt capacity and a CNG gas facility to address power outage issues, which is intended to attract foreign direct investment.
What Makes Alaro City Greater Than Others
Alaro City is claimed to be the most effective free zone in Nigeria, granting benefits such as tax exemptions and reductions in customs duties for businesses.
The city aims to reduce production costs for businesses by 30-35% for those setting up in the free zone.
When asked about noise control with the factories in operation, Oriahi stated that Alaro City upholds standard industry practices and has a team dedicated to enforcing these standards.
One of the challenges faced by Alaro City is ensuring that the workforce is adequately skilled, as the city aims to train and certify its employees to meet industry standards.
The city prioritises finding the right people for the job and emphasises the value of safety in all operations.
Alaro City is also committed to its Corporate Social Responsibility, engaging with the host community to provide employment opportunities and maintain a positive relationship with Indigenous people and community leaders.
The construction and delivery manager, Mr Olorunfemi Akindele, explained that his team is responsible for delivering infrastructure such as roads, power, and other facilities to the city.
Alaro City is a 2,000-hectare modern-use development offering residential, light industrial, and logistics development.
The city aims to provide an exceptional experience and value to its clients beyond just selling land.
The city is also preparing to introduce facilities like schools, hospitals, and recreational centres in the near future to create a fully equipped community within Alaro City.
He highlighted that within Alaro City, power outages are not experienced as they generate their power.
They have an Independent Power Plant and plan to transition to using PNG. They also support generators with solar power, contributing to sustainable power generation, and very soon, we are transitioning into running on PNG.
We also support the generators with solar, which is essential to the sustainable development of power generation.
So, within Alaro City, we generate power, and we offer and provide this facility to our clients. We don’t depend on any outside source to do this.
Ahmad Al-Amin, Marketing Communications Manager
Ahmad Al-Amin said the shareholders fully fund Alaro City with equity and embark on this development. We can reproduce what we’ve done.
For Alaro City, we partner with the Lagos State Government, where we own the majority share. Lagos State Government is contributing the land and, of course, the enabling environment to allow our business to thrive.
At the same time, Rendezvous is responsible for financing, administration, and management of the city.
Client’s Testimony About Alaro City
One of the newest clients and the Chief Operating Officer of Ariel Food, Dessa Shuckerow, told Eko Hot Blog What attracted her company to Alaro City.
As she succinctly stated it, “Six years ago, we decided as a company to come to Ariel Foods and to put up a brand and make ready-to-use food, and we were looking at what location will best suit us, and we found that Alaro City is have everything that we needed to put up world-class food factory, so we came here in 2018. We brought it down in June, and we have been running since 2021.
According to her, Ariel Food has been operating in Kenya for many years; however, with the creation of Alaro City, it became imperative for the company to have a taste of what Nigeria’s business environment looks like.
Our initial challenge was being new to Nigeria. However, with Alaro City, we quickly got started on our mission to provide food for malnourished children in Nigeria and West Africa.
Although we lacked previous experience working in Nigeria, Alaro City provided us with the confidence and support we needed.
“The development that was happening and the organization we are working with here in Alaro City really helped us,” she said.
Ariel Food specializes in the production of Therapeutic Foods, which are categorized into three types according to Shuckerow.
She explained, “Our main product is called RUTF (Ready To Use Therapeutic Foods). This food is designed for severely malnourished children and is used as a treatment in clinics or hospitals.
Once treated, children can take this food home with them for continued consumption, ultimately curing them from severe malnourishment.
In addition to this, we also offer other products aimed at preventive treatment to avoid severe malnutrition.
We cater to all the nutritional needs in Nigeria and have the capacity to export to 12 different countries.”she said
In her remarks about working in Nigeria, Shuckerow described her experience as pleasant.
She mentioned that the information she had initially received about Nigeria was different from what she encountered.
Shuckerow expressed that they had a positive experience in Nigeria and were able to set up their business without facing the difficulties that they had been warned about.
She highlighted their success in setting up quickly, their large production capacity, and the employment of 170 people.
She also emphasised the loyalty of their employees and the benefits of working with them.
Ariel Food has worked closely with the state and federal governments and found the regulatory system professional and helpful.
They have obtained certifications from NAFDAC for food products, experienced no issues, and received assistance from NAFDAC.
The company has also obtained certifications from the Standard Organisation of Nigeria and international accreditation.
However, Shuckerow requested more regular face-to-face meetings with the management of Alaro City, emphasising the resources provided by Alaro City and the desire for closer engagement,” She concluded.
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