Ibeju Lekki LG Chairman Addresses Electricity, Employment Challenges At Lekki Free Trade Zone CSR Event

By Babawale Solomon

Eko Hot Blog reports that Hon. Abdullahi Sesan Olowa, the Chairman of Ibeju Lekki Local Government, has called on corporate organizations to lend their support in the areas of persistent challenges of electricity and unemployment in Ibeju Lekki, Lagos State.

The appeal came during the Lekki Free Trade Zone (LFTZ) corporate social responsibility event held on January 3, 2024, in the zone’s hall.

The event, attended by community leaders, saw the Deputy Managing Director of LFTZ, Mrs. Bolatito Ajibode, distributing essential equipment, including boat engines, fishing nets, modern fish kilns, and solar streetlight panels.

Speaking with Eko Hot Blog, Hon. Olowa expressed his happiness and appreciation for the positive impact of LFTZ Management on the communities.

“I’m very happy happy. I’m happy that the Lekki Free Trade Zone Management are actually impacting positively on the communities by providing this equipment for fishing, which is supporting the local economy and that’s exactly what is needed so that the cooperation required from the community can be given,” he said.

“I’m very happy and I thank the deputy managing director who is providing the right leadership at this point in time.”

Highlighting the importance of the CSR initiatives, Hon. Olowa emphasized the significant role played by Mrs. Ajibode in attending to the needs of the communities.

The Ibeju Lekki LG boss acknowledged the provision of solar streetlights as major infrastructure, boat engines as vital support for local businesses, and fish kilns as a substantial empowerment for women.

Addressing the critical issue of electricity, Hon. Olowa stated that, “Our major problem in Ibeju Lekki is electricity. The entire Ibeju Lekki local government has no electricity, the substation in Ajah is no longer sufficient to power this local government.

“Our people are really suffering, we’ve been in darkness for almost ten years now. We want all the responsible companies, corporate bodies within this zone to please come out to assist by supporting the government to provide electricity for our people.

“We know it’s the responsibility of government but if every corporate organisations decides to contribute their little, I believe it will go a long way.”

He further highlighted the concerning rise in youth unemployment and urged companies in the zone to collaborate with the government in identifying skill gaps.

Expressing readiness for partnership, Olowa suggested providing support and training to fill these gaps, addressing the dual challenges of unemployment and power as critical areas of interest for the local government.

“The other thing is the issue of unemployment, the rate of unemployment among our youth is getting worrisome and we have a lot of companies here. We know they require certain skills to be able to absorb this youth, but we as a government are ready to partner with them,” the council chairman said.

“If we Identify the skill gaps we can provide some sort of support, training young people to feel those gaps, so we want them to look at the of unemployment and the area of power. These are two critical areas that we are really interested in.”