Kogi State has taken a significant step in advancing its international partnerships aimed at accelerating the implementation of its Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zone, SAPZ, programme.
The partnership with China is gaining momentum as the state intensifies efforts to fast-track SAPZ implementation and deepen agro-industrial development.
The SAPZ initiative is a strategic agro-industrial platform designed to boost food production, enhance processing capacity, create employment opportunities, attract private sector investment, and position Kogi State as a leading agricultural and industrial hub in Nigeria.
Driving agro-industrial growth through SAPZ
Central to the partnership is the development of a modern agricultural science and technology industrial park in Kogi State.
The project aligns with the broader SAPZ framework and is expected to drive agro-processing, facilitate agricultural technology transfer, support equipment deployment, promote enterprise incubation, strengthen logistics and cold chain systems, enhance export infrastructure, and provide sustainable power solutions.
The structure comprises the Ajaokuta Agro-Industrial Hub, alongside Agricultural Transformation Centres in Anyigba, Alape, and Osara, as well as the Zariagi Agro-Air Hub.
The programme is designed to integrate existing farmer clusters with an additional 150,000 hectares of farmland per zone, creating opportunities for large-scale, tenant-driven agricultural production.
Priority value chains under the programme include rice, maize, cassava, livestock and poultry, sesame, cashew, oil palm, and greenhouse farming. It also incorporates critical support systems such as warehousing, cold chain logistics, power solutions, Compressed Natural Gas, CNG, agricultural technology, equipment deployment, and agro-export infrastructure.
Strategic agreement with Chinese firms
As part of the partnership between Kogi and SAPZ, the state entered into a strategic cooperation agreement with Hezheng Holdings Group and Hezheng Digital Technology (Hezheng Innovation Valley) Co., Limited.
The agreement marks a transition from conceptual planning to implementation and reflects the state’s deliberate strategy to attract credible technical partners, industrial park operators, investors, and global business platforms into the SAPZ ecosystem.
The Kogi State delegation was led by Alhaji Yakubu Okala, FCA, Auditor General of Kogi State and Project Investment Adviser, who represented the Executive Governor of Kogi State.
Other members of the delegation included the Honourable Commissioner for Agriculture, Hon. Ojomah Timothy; Technical Adviser to the Governor’s Office, Dr. Abdullahi Ozomata; Chief Economic Adviser to the State, Alhaji Aliyu Inda Salami; and Project Consultant/Managing Director of Pulse Engineering and Consulting Limited, Mr. David Lekan Obatolu.
During the visit, the delegation toured key Hezheng facilities, including its investment promotion centre, agricultural industry exhibition hall, global launch hall, and live-streaming incubation base.
The tour provided insights into industrial park management, enterprise support systems, agricultural technology integration, and cross-border market development strategies.
Implementation roadmap and investment outlook
Deliberations under the partnership focused on actionable implementation areas such as industrial park development, technology transfer, processing infrastructure, enterprise incubation, park management systems, investment mobilisation, and equipment deployment.
Both parties also explored frameworks for establishing a structured and sustainable China–Kogi industrial cooperation platform. They expressed strong alignment on the project vision and implementation roadmap.
In the coming months, technical and commercial workstreams will advance towards full project mobilisation, including preparatory activities for groundbreaking and the establishment of coordination offices in China, Kogi State, and Abuja.
This engagement underscores the commitment of the Kogi State Government to transitioning the SAPZ programme from planning to execution, while positioning the state as a competitive destination for agro-industrial investment.
Kogi State remains resolute in its vision to build a bankable and investment-ready agro-industrial ecosystem that will enhance food security, promote value addition, create jobs, strengthen farmer-market linkages, support export growth, and unlock new economic opportunities for its people.
The development ultimately ties back to the broader objective of the partnership between Kogi and SAPZ to deliver sustainable agro-industrial growth through effective SAPZ implementation and strategic global collaboration.
